Something To Remember Me By
by autumnrose2010
Summary: Sequel to the episode 'Nyet Nyet - Not Yet.' Several weeks after the departure of the Russian cosmonauts, Ginger discovers that Igor left her with an unexpected little gift...
1. Finding Out

Ginger felt a sudden wave of nausea when she got out of bed that morning. _That's strange, _she thought. _I hardly ever get sick._

"What's wrong, Ginger?" asked Mary Ann. "You're as white as a sheet!"

"Why, I don't know!" Ginger exclaimed breathlessly. "Suddenly I just feel so dizzy..."

"Come back and sit down!" Mary Ann's maternal instincts suddenly kicked in, and she helped Ginger to a chair. "Let me bring you some water!"

Ginger picked up a large leaf and fanned herself with it. Mary Ann brought her the water, and she took a sip.

"You go ahead and have breakfast with the others. Tell them I'll eat later if I feel like it," Ginger told Mary Ann.

The others were all very concerned about their friend.

"Hopefully it's just a minor bug and she'll be better soon," said Mrs. Howell.

"I'll check her right after breakfast," the Professor said. After they had finished eating he went into the girls' hut, where he found Ginger lying in bed awake.

"Mary Ann told me you weren't feeling well," he said.

"When I got up this morning I just felt so funny," Ginger told him. "First I felt like I was going to be sick to my stomach, and then I felt like I might pass out."

"Have you eaten anything unusual lately?"

Ginger shook her head.

"Have you been getting enough rest?"

Ginger nodded.

"How has your monthly cycle been?"

Ginger gasped with surprise. "Why, I haven't...I missed last month, I suppose..."

The Professor's expression was grave. "Ginger, if I didn't know better, I could almost swear that you must be..." His voice trailed off. "But since we know it can't be _that, _I'm really at a loss...I'll go back to my hut right away and consult my medical books; maybe they'll shed some light on the mystery..."

He was almost out the door when Ginger finally got up the nerve to call to him.

"Oh...um...Professor?"

He glanced back questioningly.

"Actually, there _is _a chance that it could be..._that."_

The Professor gaped at her in disbelief. "But...which one of us, Ginger? I know that it couldn't have been me, and Mr. Howell and the Skipper both seem highly unlikely, so that leaves..._Gilligan?"_

Ginger shook her head. "Professor, remember those Russian cosmonauts who landed in the lagoon a little over a month ago?"

The Professor nodded. "Igor and Ivan. As I recall, Igor took quite a shine to you."

"I tricked him into leaving his capsule unattended so that you and Gilligan could search it," Ginger continued. "We went for a walk on the other side of the island. He asked if he could kiss me, and then one thing led to another, and...and..." Ginger, blushing fiercely, was unable to look the Professor in the eye.

"I can't _believe _it, Ginger." The Professor sighed with frustration. "How could you have been so careless?"

"I didn't intend for it to happen," Ginger said innocently. "It just...did."

The Professor just stood there, shaking his head helplessly.


	2. Telling The Others

"You've certainly gotten yourself into a predicament, Ginger," the Professor told her. "There isn't a physician, midwife, or even a nurse on this island. The only one of us with any scientific expertise whatsoever is myself, and obstetrics certainly isn't my specialty."

"I'm sure you'll do fine, Professor," Ginger cooed. "I have complete faith and confidence in you."

"I wish I could say the same for myself," the Professor told her. "Just the thought of performing a minor surgical procedure such as stitching a cut makes me feel queasy. I can't even begin to imagine myself actually delivering a baby."

"Why, I'm sure it's the most natural thing in the world," Ginger assured him. "After all, women have been having babies since prehistoric days, and they didn't have doctors or midwives back then."

"That's true," the Professor admitted. "Yet the thought of childbirth outside a modern-day medical setting makes me a tad uneasy."

"Well, you've got a few months yet to get used to the idea," Ginger said cheerfully.

"How are you going to tell the others?" asked the Professor.

"I hadn't even thought of that," Ginger admitted. "I suppose I'll have to tell them _something, _won't I?"

"Of course you will," said the Professor. "In a few months it's going to be quite obvious."

"I suppose I'll have to think of something, then," said Ginger.

"And soon," the Professor added.

The others had all been waiting patiently outside the girls' hut while the Professor examined Ginger.

"I think it's best I let Ginger tell you herself," the Professor told them when he saw them.

"Oh, Ginger, what's the matter?" cried Mary Ann, dashing into the hut.

"Do you remember Igor?" asked Ginger.

Mary Ann nodded.

"Well...he left a little piece of himself inside me before he went back home."

"No!" Mary Ann was shocked. "You mean...you did it with him and he got you..."

Ginger nodded, smiling.

"What was it like?" Mary Ann's eyes were round.

"You mean, you never have?"

Mary Ann shook her head.

"What am I saying? Why, of course you haven't." Ginger's voice was a bit condescending, and that hurt Mary's Ann's feelings a little, although of course she didn't mention it.

"He was good, Mary Ann. _Very _good." Ginger's eyes grew dreamy at the memory.

"So what are you going to do?" Mary Ann felt a little embarrassed and very awkward.

"Why, I'm going to have the baby, of course. What other choice do I have?"

Mary Ann's eyes began to sparkle. "I think it's very exciting. We'll actually have a baby on the island! I can't wait to tell everyone!"

Before Ginger could stop her, Mary Ann had burst outside the hut and was shouting to the other castaways. "Hey, everyone! Ginger's going to have a baby! Isn't that exciting?"

Suddenly everyone was talking at the same time. Ginger felt as if she simply wanted to sink through the floor.

Finally the Professor called for silence. "Everyone, please, listen to me. Ginger made a mistake, it's true, but she needs love and support, not condemnation. There's no point in getting angry at Igor, either. By now he's been back in the U.S.S.R. for a while and there's no possible way to reach him."

"The Professor's right," said the Skipper. "Unless we all stick together in support of Ginger, she'll have to go through this all alone. You hear that, Little Buddy?"

"Well, I still say that a _Howell _never would have gotten herself in this kind of situation," Mr. Howell grumbled.

"You're so right, dear. It would have been a total disgrace," his wife agreed.

For once in his life, Gilligan was silent. He knew the mechanics of what had transpired between Igor and Ginger, of course, and despite, or perhaps because of, the awe in which he had always held his fellow castaway, he had never quite been able to imagine himself in that sort of position with her.

For the first time in his life, Gilligan actually felt jealous...of a man named Igor whom he'd probably never see again.


	3. Cold Shoulder

"I think we'd all better just go about our usual business," the Professor told the group. "Ginger needs her rest."

The others did as he suggested, but Gilligan lingered.

"What is it, Gilligan?" asked Mary Ann.

"Ginger." Gilligan's eyes were round with wonder. "There's actually a baby inside her?"

"Yes." Mary Ann smiled. "But it's very important that you just act normal around her, all right? I think she's kind of embarrassed about it, and we don't want to make her feel any worse about it than she already does."

"But why should she feel bad about it?" Gilligan asked. "I think it's really neat that there's a baby inside her!"

"She isn't married," Mary Ann explained. "If this had happened back home in Kansas, people would start treating her like an outcast."

"Just because she's going to have a baby and she isn't married?"

Mary Ann nodded.

"But all we'd have to do is find Igor and get him to marry her," Gilligan said.

"And how would we do that? By now he's back in the U.S.S.R., and even if we _could _go over there to find him, they'd arrest us and put us in jail."

"But why would they do that, when we haven't done anything wrong?"

"Because they hate Americans."

"But why?"

Mary Ann sighed and shook her head. Trying to explain things to Gilligan could be so frustrating sometimes. "That's something the Professor could explain to you better than I could," she told him.

"Well, if we can't get Igor to marry her, maybe I could marry her myself," Gilligan suggested.

Mary Ann laughed and shook her head, but Gilligan, undaunted, went into the girls' hut to see Ginger.

"You don't have to be embarrassed about having a baby anymore, Ginger," he told her. "I'll marry you so that it'll be all right."

Ginger smiled. "That's very sweet of you, Gilligan," she said. "But that isn't why people get married."

"It isn't?"

"No, Gilligan. People get married because they love each other very much and want to spend the rest of their lives together. A friend doesn't marry another friend just to keep them from being embarrassed. And please don't worry about me, Gilligan. I'm going to be just fine."

Gilligan reached to lightly touch Ginger's abdomen. "It doesn't look like there's enough room for a baby in there," he remarked.

"That's because the baby is very tiny right now. It's about the size of your thumbnail," Ginger told him. "It'll grow very quickly over the next few months."

Gilligan stared at his thumbnail in awe. "You mean _I _was this tiny once?"

Ginger laughed. "All of us were," she told him.

* * *

Over the next few days, Ginger tried her best to keep up her normal share of the chores around the island, although she had to stop frequently to rest. The Skipper became very gallant toward her, refusing to allow her to lift anything heavy or to walk long distances for any reason. The Howells avoided her as much as possible, only speaking to her when absolutely necessary. Ginger was deeply hurt by their behavior but understood it.

"How can you stand it?" Mary Ann asked her one day.

"I suppose I deserve it, in a way," Ginger replied. "I remember when I once played the part of this cheerleader who got pregnant by the school's star football player. Her parents were so ashamed of her that they sent her to stay with relatives out of town. She had the baby, put it up for adoption, and then went back home, and everybody acted like nothing had ever happened. Nothing was ever said about it again, and the little girl grew up and never knew anything at all about her real parents."

"But this is real life, not Hollywood," Mary Ann protested. "We're all stuck together on this island with nobody else but each other, and I think it's just _criminal _for them to treat you this way."

"Well, at least everyone else is still nice to me," Ginger said. "It could be worse."

"That's true," Mary Ann agreed.


	4. Remembering

As time passed, Ginger's pregnancy symptoms eased and she was able to do more to help. Although the Howells never actually approved of what Ginger had done, in time they became used to the situation and gradually began to treat her much as they always had.

Gilligan was very curious about every aspect of Ginger's pregnancy and was always asking her questions about it and the upcoming birth.

"He couldn't be more excited about it if he were the father of the baby himself," Ginger remarked to Mary Ann one day.

"He'd make a great father if he weren't so much like a big kid himself," Mary Ann replied.

"Perhaps," Ginger mumbled. Her mind was drifting back to the one memorable encounter she'd had with Igor.

* * *

"_Your island looks so different at night," he said. "Is really beautiful."_

_"It gets old after awhile," she replied. "I can't begin to tell you how much I miss my glamorous career in Hollywood."_

_"Poor Ginger," Igor sympathized. "I wish there was something I could do to make you feel better."_

_"You're such a sweet man," Ginger said. "Before I met you I thought all Russians were mean and scary."_

_Igor laughed. "We are not mean and scary. We think you Americans are mean and scary. You dropped bomb on Japan, didn't you?"_

_"That was in self defense," Ginger protested._

_"You are such lovely woman, Ginger." Igor grinned._ _"In all of Union of Soviet Socialist Republics there is not one woman as lovely as you. May I give you a kiss?"_

_"I think I'd like that, Igor."  
_

_He kissed her as she hadn't been kissed in so long she didn't care to remember. A thrill of excitement went through her when she felt his tongue touch hers.  
_

_Soon she could feel the urgency of his need through their clothing.  
_

_"There's a cave near here where we could have some privacy," she whispered.  
_

_It was dark as ink inside the cave, and there wasn't really a comfortable surface for them to lie on, but they barely noticed. Desperate for one another, they quickly shed all their clothing and came together as one.  
_

_"I have enjoyed your company very much, Ginger, but now I must return to guard space capsule," Igor told her when it was over.  
_

_Ginger was disappointed that he hadn't lingered to cuddle with her for just a little while.  
_

* * *

A sudden movement in Ginger's abdomen interrupted her reverie. It was very slight, like the flutter of a baby bird's wing, but it was definitely there. With a thrill of excitement she realized what it was.

"What is it, Ginger?" asked Mary Ann.

"The baby! It just moved!" Ginger exclaimed.

Mary Anne's eyes grew wide. "Wow! Really?"

Ginger nodded. Then she took Mary Ann's hand and placed it on her belly. They waited a few minutes, and then the slight movement came again. Mary Ann giggled excitedly. "I can't wait to tell the others!"

A few minutes later Gilligan burst into the girls' hut.

"Mary Ann said she felt the baby move," he said. "Can I feel it move too?"

"Perhaps," Ginger said. "It doesn't move very much. Sometimes you have to wait a really long time."

"I don't mind," Gilligan said. He placed his hand on Ginger's belly, and a few minutes later, the baby moved again.

Ginger looked at Gilligan's face and saw that, to her surprise, he looked hurt rather than excited.

"Is something wrong, Gilligan?" she asked.

"Why'd you let him put a baby inside you, Ginger?"

"Well, I didn't really mean for _that _to happen, Gilligan. It just did."

"But why'd you let him?"

"Well, Gilligan..." Ginger sighed deeply, searching for the right words. "Sometimes when two people like each other very much, they want to be just as close as they possibly can."

"And you liked Igor that way?"

Ginger nodded.

"But you don't like me that way, do you?"

"You're a dear, sweet boy, Gilligan, and a wonderful friend. One day you'll meet a woman who _does _feel that way about you."

Before she knew it, Gilligan had dashed outside the hut and was running for his own hut.

"Gilligan! Wait!" she called, but he was already gone.


	5. Preparations And Complaints

Mary Ann returned to the hut to find Ginger looking sad.

"What's wrong?" she asked.

"Poor Gilligan," said Ginger. "I didn't mean to hurt his feelings, but he came right out and asked me if I was attracted to him in the same way that I was attracted to Igor, and I told him no because I had to be honest. He got upset and ran back to his hut."

Mary Ann sighed. "Well, you know Gilligan. He'll be depressed about it for a day or so, but then he'll bounce right back to being his normal cheerful self."

"But I feel like it's my fault that he's sad, Mary Ann. I keep wondering whether I could have told him in a gentler way."

"It sounds to me like you told him in the kindest way you knew how," Mary Ann said after Ginger had repeated the conversation she'd had with Gilligan to her. "I wouldn't worry about it if I were you. I'm sure he'll be fine."

"I just had an idea, Mary Ann," Ginger said. "Why don't you be especially nice to Gilligan for a few days? Maybe that would help him to get over his disappointment."

Mary Ann frowned. "But I don't want to lead the poor boy on either."

"Just for a few days, Mary Ann, until he's feeling better about it. Then you can go back to acting normal again."

Mary Ann thought for a moment. "All right," she agreed. "I'll do it."

As Ginger had predicted, Gilligan seemed to get over her romantic rejection fairly quickly, except that he no longer asked Ginger questions about her pregnancy, and he never asked to feel the baby move again. Ginger noticed, of course, but felt it best not to say anything. Gilligan did enjoy the extra attention Mary Ann showered upon him, and wasn't hesitant at all to show his appreciation, which greatly flattered Mary Ann.

"He really would make a wonderful husband for the right woman," Mary Ann told Ginger one day.

* * *

As Ginger's pregnancy advanced, all seven of the castaways began to discuss needed preparations for the baby's birth.

"We're going to have to make room for the crib in our hut, you know," Mary Ann pointed out.

Ginger looked around and sighed deeply in annoyance. "I suppose I'll have to get rid of a lot of my clothing and jewelry and make-up," she said. "Not that I get much opportunity to use it on this island anyway."

The Skipper and Gilligan had generously offered to construct a crib from materials found on the island. Mrs. Howell generously donated some of her clothing that didn't quite fit right anymore, and Mary Ann cut it up and made darling little baby outfits. The Skipper and Gilligan donated some of their old worn-out t-shirts, and Mary Ann ripped them up to use as diapers.

At last everything was in place and ready for the baby's arrival. By now Ginger was very large and bulky, and she waddled rather than walked. Every time she looked in the mirror she cried.

"I'm so afraid I'm never going to get back to my normal size again," she moaned.

"Why, of course you will," Mary Ann assured her.

"But suppose I don't? Then if we ever _do _get rescued, I'll never get another acting part!"

"Ginger, lots of actresses get their careers back after having babies," Mary Ann said.

"Name two."

"Well, there's...I'm sure there are a lot of them."

Sleeping at night became a problem for both women.

"I can't find a comfortable spot," Ginger complained. "I can't lie on my stomach because my belly's too big, and if I lie on my back, the baby kicks too much and keeps me awake."

"So lie on your side," Mary Ann suggested.

"That's what I have to do, but I still get uncomfortable sometimes."

"Well, I wish you'd stop tossing and turning so that at least _I _could get some sleep." Even sweet, gentle Mary Ann had her limits.

"Did you ever watch farm animals give birth?" Ginger asked another time.

"Of course I have," Mary Ann told her.

"Does it seem to hurt terribly bad?"

"It hurts some," Mary Ann admitted. "But it's over with in just a little while, and the mother's fine afterwards."

"I'll bet it hurts a lot worse for humans," Ginger said dourly. "I'll bet it takes a lot longer, too."

"Oh, don't be so negative." Mary Ann smiled and patted Ginger's arm. "I'm sure everything is going to be just fine."

Ginger's water broke late one evening.

"Mary Ann!" she called.

"What is it?"

"Go get the Professor. It's time."

Mary Ann's eyes bugged out. "Are you sure?"

"I'm positive!"

Mary Ann excitedly hurried to the Professor's hut and knocked on his door. "Professor!" she called. There was no answer. "Professor?" She pushed the door open just a tad. Still there was no response. She pushed the door open all the way and gasped. There was no sign of the Professor at all.


	6. Island Baby

Mary Ann couldn't decide what to do. If she took the time to search for the Professor, Ginger could very well have the baby before she found him. On the other hand, the thought of being alone with Ginger when the baby was born scared the wits out of her. In the end, she decided to ask the other castaways for help in finding the Professor while she returned to the hut she shared with Ginger.

She visited the Skipper and Gilligan first.

"I don't know where he is," Gilligan told her. "But I'll be happy to go look for him."

"Thank you very much," Mary Ann said. Hugely relieved, she returned to the hut to find Ginger lying on her side, moaning.

"The Professor wasn't in his hut," she told her friend. "I sent Gilligan to look for him. I'm sure he'll find him soon." She didn't feel nearly as sure of that as she was trying to sound.

"Oh, no!" Ginger groaned. Then she remembered. "Mary Ann, you said you've seen farm animals born before. It can't be that different for humans, can it?"

"Oh, Ginger, I don't know!" For the next several hours, Mary Ann paced back and forth mumbling to herself fretfully. "Come _on, _Professor...come _on, _Professor..."

"Mary Ann, this baby is going to be born right now!" Ginger cried after awhile.

"The Professor isn't here yet..." Mary Ann quaked.

"Well, it isn't going to wait on the Professor!"

"Okay..." Mary Ann hesitantly approached her friend.

"You're going to have to take those off, of course." Together she and Ginger removed all the clothing from Ginger's lower body. Then, feeling very self-conscious, she looked between Ginger's legs and saw what must be the top of the baby's head. Ginger pushed with all her might, and the rest of the baby's head emerged.

"The head is out," she announced. She crouched between Ginger's legs and got ready to catch the rest of the baby's body when it slid out. _Oh dear God, please don't let me drop it..._

Ginger pushed again and a shoulder emerged, then again and the rest of the body slid into Mary Ann's waiting hands. Just then the door of the hut flew open, and the Professor ran in, followed closely by Gilligan. Mary Ann gave a huge sigh of relief.

"Ginger!" exclaimed the Professor.

"You're a little late," Mary Ann told him wryly. She held the baby's limp body in her hands. "Professor, there's something wrong. The baby's not moving!" she said in a shaky voice.

"That's because you haven't cut the cord yet," the Professor told her. He did so, and the baby began to wail and wave its arms and legs.

"You have a new daughter, Ginger!" Mary Ann exclaimed happily.

"Let me see!" cried Ginger.

Mary Ann cleaned the baby as well as she could and then placed her in her mother's arms while the Professor delivered the afterbirth and checked to make sure that Ginger wasn't bleeding excessively.

"My baby," Ginger said dreamily, cuddling the newborn close. "Her name is Audrey Elizabeth, for Audrey Hepburn and Elizabeth Taylor."

"That's a lovely name." Mary Ann smiled happily as she watched little Audrey search for her mother's nipple. She quickly found it and latched on hungrily.

"I was looking for seashells on the other side of the island," the Professor said apologetically. "I came as soon as Gilligan found me."

"Wow." Gilligan couldn't take his eyes off Ginger's newborn daughter. "Can I hold her, Ginger?"

"Just as soon as she's finished nursing," Ginger told him.

By now the Skipper and the Howells had arrived as well, so the small hut was quite crowded.

"Back off and give Ginger some breathing room," the Professor told them. "I promise, you'll all get to see the baby soon."

Reluctantly they did as he had told them.

Ginger let Gilligan hold the baby first, as she had promised. She showed him how to support the baby's neck so that it wouldn't fall back.

"Hi, Audrey," Gilligan cooed, peering into the tiny, red, wrinkled face. "She smiled at me!" he exclaimed a minute later.

After Gilligan had held the baby, it was the Skipper's turn, then Mrs. Howell's, then Mr. Howell's.

"I think you should all go back to your own huts and let Ginger get some rest now," the Professor told them afterwards. "I promise you can all see the baby tomorrow."

Gilligan was the last to leave. He kissed Audrey's tiny cheek before saying good-bye to her.

"It's just so amazing to have a baby on the island," Mary Ann said when the others had all gone.

"It really is," Ginger agreed. "I'm just so glad the whole thing's over with now. I was really afraid of the pain. It did hurt a lot, but not as badly as I was afraid it would."

"Well, one thing's for sure," Mary Ann said. "Audrey already has plenty of people who love her."

Only later did it occur to her to wonder why the Professor had been looking for seashells on the other side of the island.


	7. Silly Ginger

After Audrey finished nursing, she fell asleep right away, and Mary Ann gently laid her in her new crib. Ginger fell into an exhausted sleep herself almost immediately, and Mary Ann also went to bed soon afterwards.

Several hours later, Mary Ann heard Audrey crying and shook Ginger awake.

"Ginger, I think Audrey's hungry," she said.

Bleary-eyed, Ginger sat up in bed and reached for the crying bundle.

Less than twenty minutes after she had settled Audrey back down, the baby began to cry again.

"But I just fed her!" Ginger exclaimed.

"Maybe she has gas," Mary Ann suggested. She lifted the baby and felt something warm and wet right away.

"So _that's _what's wrong," she said. "Poor baby!"

Audrey went through several diapers in quick succession.

"I see we're going to be doing a good bit more laundry from now on," Mary Ann sighed. She and Ginger were both awake for most of that night.

Sure enough, the other five castaways were back at the hut first thing the next morning. Other than waking up to nurse a couple of times, Audrey slept peacefully for the entire visit. The adults sat around talking for most of the day.

"Thurston and I always wanted a child very badly, but it just never happened," Mrs. Howell said sadly. "Eventually, we simply had to accept that it was apparently not meant to be."

Ginger felt a little bit guilty about the fact that she, a single woman, had gotten pregnant so quickly, while the Howells, a married couple who could have provided a child with a stable home, hadn't been able to. She also wondered whether Mr. Howell's attachment to his teddy bear was the manifestation of some type of unconscious paternal urge.

"When I was younger, I really enjoyed the single life," said the Skipper. "I literally had a girl in every port. I always thought I had plenty of time to settle down, yet look at me now, well into middle age and still alone."

"You're not _that _old," Mary Ann said, patting his arm comfortingly. "You still have some time left."

"In my pursuit of intellectual stimulation, I regret to say that I neglected to cultivate romantic attachments," said the Professor.

"What?" asked Gilligan.

"He was always so busy studying that he never had time for a girlfriend," the Skipper explained.

"I just can't help thinking that, if we'd never been shipwrecked, I'd probably be married with a baby myself now," said Mary Ann.

"Have you ever considered that that option might be available to you even now?" the Professor asked her.

"What do you mean?" Mary Ann frowned, puzzled.

"Of your fellow castaways, three of us are single men," the Professor pointed out.

Mary Ann looked at him, then at the Skipper, then at Gilligan, then back to the Professor.

"But the life we live here on this island would be a terrible one to bring a baby into!" she cried. "I know Ginger did, but that was an accident!"

The Professor sighed. "I suppose you're right," he said sadly.

* * *

Several days after giving birth, Ginger's breasts became painfully engorged.

"I've seen that happen before with cows and horses," Mary Ann told her. It'll relieve the pain if you pump the extra milk out by hand. Here, I'll show you how."

As awkward and embarrassed as she felt letting her friend handle her breasts, Ginger was desperate for relief. Using a hollowed-out coconut half, Mary Ann showed her the proper technique. Soon the excess milk ceased to be a problem, but another woe took its place.

"My nipples have become so sore!" Ginger complained. "Every time Audrey nurses, it feels as if she's chewing them to bits, even though I know she doesn't have any teeth yet."

"Why don't you talk to the Professor about it," Mary Ann suggested. "Perhaps he knows of an herbal remedy that would help."

"Oh, no, I could never talk the the Professor about _that!" _Ginger exclaimed.

"Why not?" asked Mary Ann.

"Well...I just wouldn't feel comfortable discussing that type of thing with a man," Ginger said.

"Oh, Ginger, you're being silly," said Mary Ann. "The Professor's seen you naked before. He had to check to make sure that you were all right after Audrey was born, remember?"

"I know," said Ginger. "But this is different."

"How is it different?"

"It just is, that's all." Suddenly Ginger had an idea. "Hey, Mary Ann, could you talk to him about it for me? Please?"

"Well...all right," Mary Ann reluctantly agreed. "But I still think you're being silly."


	8. Mary Ann's Birthday

"Why, of course!" the Professor exclaimed. "I have a salve right here that I think would do the trick. It contains..." He began to rattle off the names of the salve's ingredients.

"Well, never mind all that. Just give it to me so that I can take it to Ginger."

"Certainly." The Professor handed the vial containing the salve to Mary Ann, who took it to the girls' hut.

Ginger was pleased to find that not only did the salve help her sore nipples, it also did wonders for Audrey's diaper rash.

One night soon afterwards, Audrey had a long crying jag that lasted for hours and hours. Ginger and Mary Ann tried everything they could think of, but nothing seemed to help at all. Finally, in desperation, Ginger looked at Mary Ann and nodded in the direction of the Professor's hut.

"But we can't wake him up! It's the middle of the night!" Mary Ann protested.

"But we _have _to! He's the only one who can help Audrey!" Ginger wailed.

With great reluctance, Mary Ann went with Ginger and Audrey to the Professor's hut. She knocked softly, and a few moments later, the Professor came to the door, rubbing his eyes groggily.

"We're very sorry to wake you," Mary Ann began.

"Audrey's been crying for hours, and I don't know what's wrong with her!" Ginger cried in exasperation.

Silently, the Professor took the baby into his arms, gently laid her on the bed, and felt her stomach.

"Just as I thought," he mumbled. He went to his cabinet, where he fetched a small bottle with a dropper. He dropped several drops of a clear liquid into Audrey's mouth, and within moments the baby had stopped crying and fallen asleep.

"She's fine," the Professor told Ginger. "Just a bad case of colic, is all."

"Oh, thank you, Professor!" Ginger threw her arms around the Professor's neck, and he grinned and patted her back.

The next day Mary Ann stopped by the Professor's hut again.

"It's so amazing how you seem to always have exactly what we need to help Audrey," she told him. "How on earth do you do it?"

"I simply anticipated the probable medical needs a newborn would have and researched and prepared products that would meet those needs," the Professor replied.

"You're such a smart man, Professor."

"I know." He grinned.

* * *

Mary Ann's birthday was a few weeks later. Ginger and Mrs. Howell baked her a cake, and each of her fellow castaways gave her a present. As resources were, of course, limited, most of the presents were very simple ones, such as decorated rocks to use as paperweights, but Mary Ann was touched that everyone had remembered her.

"Close your eyes," the Professor told her when it was his turn. Obediently, Mary Ann closed her eyes and waited patiently. She felt something lightly touch her neck.

"Now open them," the Professor instructed. Mary Ann did, and found to her delight that he'd placed a beautiful necklace made of seashells around her neck.

"Oh, Professor, it's lovely! Thank you!" Mary Ann exclaimed happily.

"It was made from the seashells I collected the day Audrey was born," the Professor told her.

"Well, in that case, I don't mind at all that I had to deliver Audrey by myself," Mary Ann said happily.


	9. Audrey's First Year

Audrey soon grew to be a chubby, happy baby with dark brown hair and eyes and facial features remarkably similar to Ginger's. Before long she was able to roll over by herself, and soon after that, she was able to sit alone without being propped. Just one thing had Ginger slightly concerned.

"It seems to me that she ought to have a tooth by now," she said to Mary Ann one day.

"Oh, I wouldn't worry," Mary Ann replied. "My Mom told me I didn't get my first tooth until I was almost walking."

One night when Audrey was about eight months old she seemed crankier than usual, and woke up more often during the night than she usually did.

"She feels so warm," Ginger said. "I sure hope she's not coming down with something."

"None of us ever get sick," Mary Ann observed. "There don't seem to be any viruses or harmful bacteria on this island."

"Even so, she's still only a baby," Ginger said. "She might be susceptible to something that the rest of us are immune to."

"I'm sure she'll be fine," Mary Ann replied, although she was a bit worried about the baby herself.

Audrey continued to seem cranky and unwell over the next couple of days. Ginger had just about decided to mention it to the Professor when suddenly the baby seemed completely back to normal again.

That night while putting Audrey to bed, Ginger cried out in surprise.

"Hey, Mary Ann, look!" she said excitedly.

Mary Ann rushed over to the crib, where Ginger proudly showed her the tiny bit of white in Audrey's lower gum.

"Soon you'll be eating the same food the rest of us do, Audrey," Gilligan told her the next day.

"Not for awhile," the Professor corrected him. "We'll have to wait until her digestive system is mature enough to handle it."

Gilligan looked disappointed.

* * *

Not long after that, Audrey began pulling herself to a standing position and walking holding onto furniture and other objects. Ginger and Mary Ann spent a lot of time holding her hands and encouraging her to take steps. As she practiced more and more, she got faster and faster, but still neither of the girls had seen her take a step without holding onto anything yet.

That happened one afternoon after Audrey had awakened from a nap. At the time, Ginger and Mary Ann were sitting a few feet apart from one another under the shade of a tree.

"Go ahead, sweetie! Walk to Mary Ann!" Ginger encouraged, holding the little girl's hands loosely. Audrey looked doubtfully at Mary Ann, who was holding both arms out and beckoning with her hands. "Come on! Come on!"

Suddenly Audrey grinned and took a step in Mary Ann's direction. Ginger and Mary Ann cheered. Audrey, realizing that she'd just done something clever, giggled.

The girls were so excited that they called their friends over to watch right away, and with some prompting, Audrey took a few steps for their benefit as well.

* * *

It was at about the same time that Audrey started trying to talk. At first her efforts sounded like gibberish, but after awhile, the girls began to recognize distinct syllables.

Ginger spent many hours trying to get Audrey to say 'Mama' and was thrilled when she finally succeeded. Next she tried to teach her daughter to say the names of the others. She learned to say 'Mary Ann' and the Howells' names easily enough, but she left the 'r' out of 'Professor' and said 'Kipper' instead of 'Skipper.' The name she had the most trouble with was Gilligan's. Every time she tried to say it, 'Giggle Ann' came out instead.

For Audrey's first birthday, Mary Ann made her a cake with white icing, pink flowers, and the words 'Happy Birthday Audrey' across the top in pink. Ginger dressed her in her cutest outfit, and the adults had a party for her, complete with candles and presents. The Professor had found some really creative ways to make toys from natural materials found on the island, and the little girl was delighted with them. Mary Ann also sewed her a big cloth doll, which she held onto and refused to let go of.

"I think that between the two of us, we made it a pretty special day for Audrey," Mary Ann said to the Professor as they watched the little girl busy at play.

"Your doll certainly turned out to be a big hit," the Professor replied.

"So did your toys," Mary Ann said. "I really admire your creativity."

"I could say the same about yours," the Professor said with a big smile that made Mary Ann feel pleasantly warm inside.


	10. Rising Star

From the very beginning, Ginger had her heart set on Audrey becoming an actress like herself. By the time the little girl was three years old, her mother had her learning to walk straight by walking with a stack of books on her head.

"Don't you think she's a little young for that?" asked Mary Ann.

"Not at all," Ginger replied. "If she's going to be successful at competing in Hollywood, she has to start young."

"But what if she doesn't want to be an actress?" Mary Ann asked.

"But of course she will," Ginger said. "When she sees how glamorous the life of a movie star is, she'll know it's the only life for her."

Mary Ann wasn't sure about that at all, but she didn't want to start an argument about it, so she said nothing.

From a very early age, Audrey showed a definite interest in science and nature. She spent hours tagging along behind the Professor, asking him endless questions such as why the sky was blue and why it was dark at night. She loved to collect hermit crabs and watch them crawl around, and when she caught a caterpillar, she proudly showed it to the Professor. Her eyes grew round with wonder as he explained to her how it would spin a cocoon and then emerge from it as a butterfly.

The Professor put the caterpillar in a clear glass jar with some sticks and leaves, and Audrey came back every day to watch its progress. She was excited when the caterpillar spun a cocoon, thrilled when the butterfly emerged from the cocoon, and distraught when the Professor opened the jar and set the butterfly free.

"It wouldn't be happy just living in a jar," the Professor explained. "It would want to be free to go wherever it wanted. You wouldn't like it if you had to just stay in the hut all the time and never come out, would you?"

Audrey shook her head. "But it was so pretty!"

"That's why it needs to be free," the Professor told her. "So that the whole world can enjoy its beauty."

Ginger and Mary Ann showed Audrey books with pictures of families - mothers, fathers, and children.

"Is Gilligan my daddy?" asked Audrey. "He has dark hair and eyes like I do."

"No," said Ginger. "Your daddy was a man named Igor. He had to go away, but if he knew about you, I'm sure he'd love you just like I do."

"Will I ever meet him?"

"I don't know. He had to go back to his own country."

"What does he look like? Do you have a picture of him?"

"I don't have a picture of him, but he was very tall and had hair and eyes just like yours."

"I wish I could visit him."

"So do I, sweetheart. Perhaps we can someday, if we ever get off this island."

"I wish I had a brother or sister. I'm tired of being the only little kid on the island."

"I know, sweetie. Maybe you will some day."

Audrey was very intelligent and was able to read before her fourth birthday. She picked up counting and simple addition and subtraction very quickly as well. Gilligan and Mary Ann spent hours using seashells or small pebbles to illustrate adding and taking away.

Ginger, who still wanted a show business career for her daughter, taught her many Broadway songs, and by the age of five, Audrey was putting on short skits for the entertainment of the castaways.

"You've got yourself a great little actress there, Ginger," the Skipper said after one such performance.

"She's very talented," the Professor agreed. "Given the appropriate circumstances, I'm sure she'd achieve stellar success."

"And not only that, but if we ever got rescued, she could go to Hollywood and become famous just like her mom," added Gilligan.

"I want that for her so badly," Ginger sighed.


	11. Rescued

_A/N: Gilligan fans, don't despair. Our little buddy will find love as well soon. Also, the second shipwreck at the end of the movie won't be in this story. I also left out the Soviet spies who were after Gilligan's good luck disc because I thought that would make the story too complicated._

Audrey was twelve when the storm came. She could hear the wind howling and felt very frightened as Gilligan tied her and the others to the poles inside the hut. Hours later, she and the others awoke to find themselves floating on the wide open sea. It was the first time in her entire life she'd been off the island.

At first everyone panicked when they realized that Gilligan wasn't in the hut with them, and they were all very relieved to find him hanging onto an uprooted palm tree attached to the hut by a rope.

After a couple of days afloat, Gilligan was cooking fish when the smoke from his fire alerted coast guard helicopters.

At last the makeshift craft landed at a dock in Hawaii, and hundreds of people rushed to greet the castaways as they came ashore. From Hawaii they were flown to California, where they were once again greeted warmly by a large crowd. Then they hugged each other, said farewell, and prepared to go their separate ways.

* * *

As he prepared to say good-bye to Mary Ann, Professor Roy Hinkley knew that this was his last chance. If he didn't tell her how he felt about her now, she'd return to her farm in Kansas and marry someone else.

"Mary Ann?" he began.

"What is it, Professor?"she asked.

"There's something I've been wanting to tell you for a long time," the Professor said. "While we were on the island, we were primarily concerned with survival and rescue, but now things are different."

"Mary Ann, ever since I first met you, I've known that there was something special about you. As I've gotten to know you, my feelings for you have deepened over the years. What I'm trying to tell you is that I'm in love with you."

Mary Ann gasped with surprise, and then a smile lit up her entire face. "Oh, Professor, I'm so happy!"

"Please call me Roy." He grinned.

"I love you too, Roy," said Mary Ann. They embraced and kissed for the first time.

"Will you return to Ohio with me?" asked Roy. "I plan to return to my position at the university there."

"I'd like to visit my family in Kansas first. I haven't seen them in fifteen years."

"Of course," said Roy. "How about if we get married here in L.A. and I accompany you to Kansas? I could delay my return to the university for a little while. After all, I've been away for so long that a couple of weeks more won't make any difference."

"But who can we find to marry us on such short notice?" asked Mary Ann.

"Why, a justice of the peace, of course," Roy told her.

* * *

Audrey was completely overwhelmed by the sight of the throng that came to meet the castaways when they arrived in Hawaii. She'd seen pictures of crowds in books, of course, but actually experiencing it was an entirely different thing. Instinctively she tried to hide behind her mother as the group walked up the ramp.

"The group includes Audrey Elizabeth Grant, the twelve-year-old daughter of actress Ginger Grant," announced a reporter. "Audrey was born on the island and until now has spent her entire life there." He shoved the microphone into Audrey's face. "Tell us, Audrey, what's it like to actually see civilization for the very first time?"

"I don't know yet. It's too soon to tell," Audrey replied. The reporter thought her answer was simply hilarious.

"Do you plan to follow in your famous mother's footsteps and become an actress as well?" asked another reporter, shoving another microphone into Audrey's face.

"I don't know. I like science as well," she told him.

The flight from Hawaii to California fascinated Audrey. She asked the Professor dozens of questions about the airplane and how it was able to fly so high while carrying so many people at one time. Patiently he explained as best he could.

Upon reaching the airport in Los Angeles, there was the crowd scene to cope with, of course. Ginger thought that her daughter coped admirably well until it was time for the former castaways to part ways.

"Does this mean we're never going to see them again, ever?" Audrey asked her mother.

"Of course we'll see them again," Ginger told her. "We'll visit each other from time to time. We just won't see each other every day like we did on the island."

Saying good-bye to Mary Ann was hardest. "Can't you stay here in California with me and Mom?" Audrey asked her.

"No, sweetheart," Mary Ann told her. "I have to go back to Kansas because it's my home, where my family lives. I'll write to you, though, and call you on the telephone. I'll send you pictures, too, of the farm and all the animals. Won't that be nice?"

Audrey clung to Mary Ann and buried her face in her friend's bosom. "I don't want you to go," she mumbled.

"I'm sorry, sweetheart, but I have to." Mary Ann rubbed the girl's back comfortingly. "I promise you, we'll see each other again someday. I'll come visit you, or perhaps you can come visit me."

Audrey clung to Mary Ann and wept inconsolably.


	12. Gilligan Finds Love

The wedding of Professor Roy Hinkley and Mary Ann Summers took place that very afternoon, in the judge's chamber in City Hall in Los Angeles. As she stood beside the man she'd known and loved for fifteen years and exchanged vows with him, Mary Ann's heart was bursting with joy. She couldn't wait until she and Roy began their new life together.

"You may kiss the bride," said the judge, and Roy kissed Mary Ann's lips for the very first time. It was something he'd longed to do for years but had forcibly restrained himself until just the right moment.

From City Hall it was a quick ride to the airport, and they boarded the first airplane to Kansas. The newlyweds held hands as the airplane rose up into the sky.

"I can't wait for my family to meet you," Mary Ann told her new husband.

"I certainly hope they approve," Roy replied.

"I don't see any reason in the world why they wouldn't," Mary Ann said, reaching over to kiss his lips again. She'd longed to do so many times over the years as well, and fully intended to make up for all lost time.

Soon the airplane touched down in the airport in Kansas. Mary Ann's family were all thrilled to see her again, and happy to meet Roy.

"He's just the kind of man I'd always dreamed you'd marry," Mary Ann's mother told her.

As it turned out, Roy and Mary Ann had arrived just in time for dinner. After dinner, they retired to Mary Ann's old bedroom.

"Why, it's just the same as when I left it," Mary Ann said as she looked around.

Roy took her into his arms and began to kiss her. Within moments they were both feeling very passionate. Roy began to caress Mary Ann, then unzipped her dress.

"I...I've never undressed in front of a man before," Mary Ann stuttered.

"Well, there's no time like the present, is there?" Roy asked cheerfully.

Mary Ann giggled and stood still as Roy finished unzipping the dress, gently tugged it off her shoulders, and let it fall to her feet. Then he removed his own shirt and folded it neatly over a chair. Mary Ann did the same with her dress, and when she turned around, she saw that Roy had shed his slacks as well and stood in his underwear.

They began to kiss again, and Roy reached behind Mary Ann to where her bra was fastened. "May I?" he asked. She nodded wordlessly, and soon the bra had joined the other discarded clothing. Roy cupped Mary Ann's breast in his hand, then leaned to take her nipple into his mouth. Waves of pleasure shot through Mary Ann, causing her knees to go weak and a new kind of aching between her legs to begin. Roy helped her onto the bed, then joined her there. Within moments he'd removed her panties, and his fingers were between her legs, touching her in ways she'd never been touched before that soon drove her over the edge for the very first time.

She opened her eyes to see him grinning at her. She noticed the bulge in his underwear and hesitantly reached to touch it. "Can I see?"

"Of course!" Her heart pounded as he quickly removed his underwear. Then her hands were all over him, exploring every inch of skin, reveling in the discovery so long denied her.

"Are you ready?" he asked.

"Oh, yes!" she exclaimed.

He entered her, and they made love for the very first time. For Mary Ann, it was a moment of pain followed by a lasting euphoria.

* * *

Several days later they were approached by the Skipper and Gilligan, who explained that they needed Roy and Mary Ann, as well as the rest of the castaways, to sign an affidavit stating that the shipwreck hadn't been the Skipper's fault so that their insurance would pay for another boat. Mary Ann's cousin Cindy was visiting them at the time. She was about the same size as Mary Ann and had short blonde hair.

"Hi!" she beamed when she saw Gilligan.

"Hi," he replied, staring hard at her.

"Gilligan, you know it isn't polite to stare at people," the Skipper admonished him.

"I'm sorry," Gilligan told Cindy. "It's just that you're so beautiful..."

Cindy giggled. "Well, you're kind of cute yourself!"

"Would you like to go to dinner with me sometime?" asked Gilligan.

"I'd love to!"

"How about tonight?"

"Sure!"

"That's so sweet," Mary Ann remarked after the Skipper and Gilligan had left. "I really hope it works out for them."

"So do I," said Roy. "I've always known that Gilligan would make a wonderful husband for the right woman."

"Now if we could just find someone for the Skipper," said Mary Ann.

"I'm sure he'll do just fine on his own." Roy chuckled.


	13. Settling In

It was almost no time before Audrey came down with a severe case of the sniffles, which soon progressed into strep throat.

"It's only to be expected," the pediatrician, Dr. White, told Ginger. "Your daughter has spent her entire life isolated on an island with only seven other people. Now she's suddenly been thrust into a world where she encounters hundreds of people and their germs, germs to which she's never been exposed so hasn't had the opportunity to build up an immunity to. As soon as she's better, she'll have to have all her immunizations. She won't be able to start school without them."

Having never been sick before, Audrey found her symptoms hard to take. She'd never been in a situation where she felt too weak and dizzy to get out of bed, and she'd never felt pain like the pain in her throat before. Ginger gave her painkillers and plenty of fluids, and in a couple of days she felt mostly normal again.

Audrey dreaded the trip to the health department for the vaccinations. Her eyes grew wide with fear as she watched the nurse prepare to give her the injection.

"I've never had a shot before," she said.

"Just a little pinch, and then it'll be all over with," the nurse assured her, swabbing her arm with an alcohol pad. "I imagine life on that island must have been really different."

"It's the only life I've ever known," Audrey told her. "I just can't believe how many different kinds of people there are in the world. Black people, Asian people, really old people, all different kinds of people."

"Here it comes." The nurse prepared to administer the injection, and Audrey grimaced as the needle pierced her skin. "See? I told you there was nothing to it."

Audrey sighed with relief.

"Which one of those four men is your father? That's something we've all been wondering."

"None of them are. My Mom said my father was a man from Russia named Igor who was only on the island for a little while and then had to go away."

"Don't you ever wonder what he's like?"

"Sure," said Audrey. "But I doubt I'll ever get to meet him."

"That's a real shame."

* * *

"Well, this is it," said Roy as he led his new wife over the threshold. "Home sweet home."

He took Mary Ann on a quick tour of the house. The living room contained a comfortable-looking sofa, a couple of recliners, a coffee table, and a large bookshelf full of books. The bedroom contained a double bed, a couple of end tables, and another large bookcase full of books.

"Wow! Have you really read all these?" asked Mary Ann.

"Some of them several times." Roy chuckled.

Even the guest bedroom contained a small bookcase which was also full of books.

"This room would make a great nursery, wouldn't it?" asked Mary Ann.

Roy grinned and hugged her.

* * *

Thanks to the Professor's tutoring, Audrey was prepared to enter the seventh grade when school resumed. She looked around herself with awe as she entered the building. Never before had she seen so many people around her own age in the same place at the same time before. Most clustered in small groups. A few walked alone. Several looked at her and whispered, and she wondered whether they recognized her from the news.

Feeling a bit self-conscious, she found her homeroom class and sat at a desk near, but not at, the front of the room, which quickly filled with the lively chatter of the other students. A short blonde wearing eyeglasses sat at the desk across from Audrey's and smiled at her. Audrey smiled back.

The teacher called for quiet, and the lively chatter diminished to whispers.

"Welcome to my class," she began. "My name is Mrs. Henderson. We have a new student this year. Audrey Grant was stranded on an uncharted island for her entire life with just her mother and six other people. They were rescued only recently. I'm sure you heard about it in the news. I hope you'll all make Audrey feel welcome here at Santa Monica Middle School."

Audrey wanted to crawl underneath the desk. She felt the eyes of all the other students on her.

Mrs. Henderson talked for a few more minutes and passed out some paperwork, and then the bell rang for first period.

Audrey glanced at the girl who had smiled at her earlier.

"You're Audrey, right?" the girl asked. Audrey nodded.

"I'm Diane, and this is Ramona." She nodded to a girl with dark hair and an olive complexion who stood beside her.

"What do you have first?" Diane asked Audrey.

"Math with Mr. Burgess."

"Me too!" Happily Diane fell into step beside Audrey, Ramona keeping step with the two of them.


	14. Valley Girls

At lunchtime a swarm of students surrounded the three girls, eager to ask Audrey questions about her life on the island. Audrey answered them as best she could, getting to know her two new friends at the same time.

"My dad's a producer," Dianne told her. "My mom used to be a supermodel when she was younger. She still does an occasional commercial."

"My mom's Diana's family's maid," Ramona told Audrey in a slight Spanish accent. "My dad works as a valet. I have two younger brothers and two younger sisters."

Audrey was absolutely overwhelmed by the hustle and bustle of Santa Monica Middle School. By the end of the school day, she was utterly exhausted.

"How was school?" Ginger asked her daughter.

"There are just so many kids!" Audrey exclaimed.

Ginger laughed. "I know. It was that way when I was in school too."

"I met a couple of nice girls, Diane and Ramona."

"That's nice," said Ginger.

"I wonder what Mary Ann's doing right now," said Audrey.

"I'm sure she's busy getting used to living in Ohio and being married to the Professor."

"Do you suppose you'll ever get married, Mom?"

"I suppose I will, if the right man every comes along."

Since returning home, Ginger had been inundated with requests for dates from men. For most of them it was just the novelty of dating a former castaway, she knew. After fifteen years of near seclusion, the thought of returning to the dating world frightened her. She knew that over time, the rules had changed, and she wasn't really sure what would be expected of her on a date now.

The singular incident on the island with Igor had been completely unexpected, but to her, it had seemed very natural and right at the time. Of the men she'd met since her return to civilization, not a single one had inspired similar feelings in her. Yet she had to admit to an unfamiliar sense of loneliness, one which she'd never felt on the island, where she'd been surrounded by six friends and her daughter. Sometimes she missed the others so much that it was almost a physical pain, and although each of them was only a telephone call away, it just wasn't the same thing as being able to visit them in person.

* * *

"Want to go to Encino with us tonight?" Diane asked Audrey Friday afternoon.

"What's Encino?"

"Where the mall is!" Diane and Ramona said in unison.

"What's a mall?"

Both of Audrey's friends giggled. "You'll find out!"

"How will we get there?"

"We'll take a cab," said Diane. "I've got my dad's credit card."

"What's a credit card?"

"A little square piece of plastic that you can use instead of money," Diane explained patiently.

"I'll ask my mom, but I'm sure it'll be all right," said Audrey.

The cab came and picked her up at the appointed time. Diane and Ramona chattered excitedly while Audrey stared at the wonders passing outside the window, too awed to pay much attention to anything else.

The mall completely enchanted her. It seemed some kind of wonderland that could only exist in a dream.

"There are so many different colors and designs to choose from!" she exclaimed, looking through a rack of clothing. "How do you ever decide which one you want?"

"If I can't decide, I just buy one in every color," Diane said breezily. Audrey's eyes bugged out. Diane and Ramona laughed.

"Oh my God! Like, look who's here!" squealed a feminine voice from behind them. Audrey turned to see two girls who were about her age. They were both wearing very expensive-looking clothes.

"Danielle! Nicole!" exclaimed Diane. "How are you both?"

"Like, totally bitchin'," said one of the girls.

"This is Audrey Grant," Diane told the two girls. "Audrey, this is Danielle Saunders and Nicole Porter."

"The castaway!" squealed Danielle. "That is, like, _so _totally tubular!"

"How on earth did you stand it, not being able to go shopping for all that time?" Nicole asked Audrey.

"I didn't know what I was missing, so there was no reason for me to feel sad about it," Audrey told her. "I _do _really miss the others, though, especially Mary Ann."

"Mary Ann?" Danielle cocked an eyebrow.

"She lived in the hut with Mom and me. She's the one who grew up on a farm in Kansas."

"You mean with, like, animals and manure and stuff? Grody to the max!" squealed Danielle.

"Gag me with a spoon!" Nicole agreed.

"My parents have always said there's no shame in any kind of honest work," said Ramona.

"Oh, what would a couple of wetbacks know?" asked Danielle.

"My parents came to this country legally!" Ramona was so upset that she was almost shrieking. "They both have green cards!"

"I was only kidding," Danielle insisted. "Can't you, like, take a joke?"

"Never mind," said Nicole. "There's a really bitchin' pair of jeans over there calling my name!"

"Why do they talk like that?" Audrey asked Diane after Danielle and Nicole had walked away.

"All the girls who live in the San Fernando Valley talk that way," Diane told her. "It's their way of showing off. They want to make sure everybody knows how rich their families are."

"Well, I think they sound silly," said Audrey. "And what Danielle said to Ramona was just plain mean!"

"It's all right," Ramona said bravely. "I'm used to it."

The girls didn't talk much for the remainder of the shopping trip, and they left not long after their encounter with Danielle and Nicole.

"Mom, why do some people look down on farmers?" Audrey asked Ginger when she got home.

"I suppose because they're not always very well educated, and they have to do work that's kind of dirty sometimes," said Ginger. "Why do you ask?"

"Never mind," said Audrey. She didn't really feel like telling her mother about Danielle and Nicole.


	15. Igor

One day, Mary Ann Hinkley received a very unexpected telephone call.

"Alison!" she squealed. "What a lovely surprise!"

Mary Ann's cousin, Alison Palmer, lived in Gloucester, Massachusetts. Although Alison was a couple of years younger than Mary Ann, the two girls had always been very close. They hadn't seen one another since they'd been teenagers.

"Ever since I heard you'd been rescued, I've been wanting to get back in touch with you very much," said Alison. "I called your mother in Kansas, and she told me you'd married and moved to Ohio. She gave me your phone number."

"Well, I'm awfully glad to hear from you!" Mary Ann exclaimed.

"So tell me about your husband," said Alison. "What's he like?"

"His name's Roy Hinkley, and he's a professor," Mary Ann told her. "We were shipwrecked together for fifteen years with five other people. Well, actually six, counting Ginger's daughter, Audrey. She was born on the island. I always kind of liked Roy, and he always kind of liked me, but we couldn't really do anything about it while we were still on the island, as we were mainly just concerned with surviving and getting rescued. Then, when we were all in Los Angeles getting ready to go our separate ways, Roy told me how he really felt about me. I was thrilled, and we were married later that same day."

"Gosh, that sounds so romantic!" Alison gushed.

"So are you married as well?" asked Mary Ann.

"Not anymore," Alison said sadly. "I was married to Dennis Phillips, but he was sent to Vietnam only a few weeks after we were married, and he never made it back."

"Gosh, that's terrible. I'm so sorry," said Mary Ann.

"I have a little boy, Denny. He's five years old. He was born after his father...well, you know."

"Aw, that's sweet," said Mary Ann. "Roy and I want to have a baby, too."

"Well, good luck," said Alison. "I hope you get pregnant soon."

"Thank you," Mary Ann replied. "Perhaps Roy and I could make it to Gloucester to visit you soon."

"That would be great!" Alison exclaimed.

Mary Ann drove to the college campus to have lunch with Roy, as was her usual habit. She sang along with the car radio as the winding road led her through the plush greenery of the campus grounds. The music of the 1970's seemed very different from that of the 1960's, and while Mary Ann didn't care for disco, she found that she enjoyed the music of soft rock groups such as Dr. Hook and Captain and Tenille very much.

Arriving at the campus cafeteria, she found a parking spot and went inside to meet Roy. She saw him surrounded by a pack of enthusiastic pom pom girls and looking frustrated. He saw Mary Ann and looked relieved. Dodging the pom pom girls, he hurried to his wife's side.

"They're always after me about something," he complained. "Team mascots, fund raisers, all kinds of things. Whatever happened to caring about genuine scientific research?"

_"I _care about genuine scientific research," Mary Ann said loyally, entwining her arm with his. "Let's go get some lunch."

They got their lunch and sat at a picnic table outside to eat.

"I heard from my cousin Alison this morning," Mary Ann told her husband.

"That's nice," Roy replied.

"She's a widow now. Her husband was killed in Vietnam. She has a five-year-old son named Denny."

"That's a shame about her husband," said Roy.

"It is," Mary Ann agreed. "I'll bet her little boy's cute. I told her that perhaps we could come and visit her in Gloucester sometime."

"Maybe after I've accumulated some leave time," Roy said.

* * *

Life settled into a comfortable routine for Ginger and Audrey. Having been out of the acting business for fifteen years, Ginger was shocked by the changes in cultural norms at first, but she soon adjusted to them. Even so, she still refused to star in any movie with a rating that was higher than PG. Her fellow actresses teased her and called her old fashioned, but she stuck to her principles, even turning down a few lucrative parts because of them.

One afternoon, Ginger and Audrey had just finished dinner and cleared away the dishes when the doorbell rang.

She recognized him as soon as she saw him. Those eyes. That smile. Those dimples.

"Hello, Ginger," he said. "I am Igor. Do you remember me?"


	16. Reawakened Feelings

Flabbergasted, Ginger could only stare at first, but she recovered quickly. "Of course. Come on in," she said, stepping aside.

As soon as Igor entered the living room, his eyes fell on Audrey, who was standing beside the sofa. They both gasped in shock as their eyes met.

Igor looked from Audrey to Ginger. "Is she...?" Ginger nodded.

"Hello." Igor smiled and extended his hand. "I am very happy to meet you."

Audrey just stared with wide eyes. "Are you really my father?"

"You are very beautiful girl."

"Thank you," Audrey said, staring at the floor.

"I would have told you about her, if I'd had any way to get in touch with you," Ginger told Igor.

"What is your name?" asked Igor.

"Audrey." Her voice was almost a whisper.

"Is very pretty name." Igor smiled uncertainly.

"Why don't you have a seat, and I'll get you a drink," said Ginger.

Igor sat on the sofa, while Audrey continued to stand, glancing warily at him every few seconds.

"Sit down, Audrey," said Ginger. Audrey sat on the opposite end of the sofa from from Igor.

"I do not bite." Igor chuckled and patted the seat beside him, and Audrey moved closer.

"I thought I'd never see you again," said Ginger. "How'd you get here?"

"I defect to United States ten years ago."

"And you've lived here all this time?"

"Oh, no. I live in one place, then another. I hear castaways are rescued, I say to myself, I go to California, maybe get to see Ginger again. Beautiful Ginger. I never forget you, you know."

"So you never married, then?"

"I was married about a year after I come here to U.S., but I am divorced now."

"Do you have any kids?"

"I have son, Mark. He is seven, and daughter, Jennifer. She is five. They live in Minnesota with their mother, stay with me in the summer."

"I have a brother and sister!" Audrey exclaimed.

"I have picture. You would like to see?"

"Of course!"

Igor showed Audrey a picture of Mark and Jennifer. "They have hair and eyes just like me!" Audrey said excitedly.

"Yes, they do." Igor quickly glanced over Audrey's face appreciatively. "You have your mother's nose, forehead, and chin. Very lovely."

"Everyone tells me that." Audrey giggled.

Ginger brought a drink for Igor, then sat in the recliner across from him and Audrey.

"You were on island for long time," Igor commented.

"Fifteen years," Ginger sighed.

"Must have been lonely."

"Oh, no. The seven of us became great friends. Well, really, the eight of us."

"But no one to cuddle with at night." Igor's eyes twinkled mischievously. Audrey blushed furiously.

"I got used to it." Ginger sighed. "I used to think about you from time to time and wonder what you were doing."

Igor looked pleased. "You know what? I think about you from time to time as well, Ginger."

"I've always wondered what it would be like to meet you," Audrey told Igor.

"This is wonderful, yes? I not only find Ginger again, but daughter I didn't even know I had."

"What am I supposed to call you?" asked Audrey.

"You can call me Papa, if you want."

"What do Mark and Jennifer call you?"

"They call me Daddy."

"Well, I'm twelve." Audrey idly twisted a lock of hair around her finger. "How about if I just call you Dad?"

"That would be fine."

Audrey grinned.

"You have never been to Disneyland, no? I take you to Disneyland," Igor said to Audrey.

"That would be awesome!" Audrey's eyes lit up.

"You can come too, if you want, Ginger."

"I think I'd like that."

Igor smiled and took Ginger's hand for the first time in thirteen years. He smiled as he gazed into her eyes, and Ginger felt a shiver of pleasure run down her spine.

"I will pick you up Saturday morning," said Igor. He kissed her hand, then said good-bye.

"Oh, wow! Just wait till I tell Diane and Ramona tomorrow!" Audrey gushed.

Ginger, wrapped up in her own thoughts, barely heard her. The visit from Igor had reawakened feelings she hadn't felt in thirteen years, feelings she hadn't been sure she'd ever feel again.


	17. Disneyland

Ginger got very little sleep that night. She couldn't get Igor's face out of her mind. It had been thirteen years. Their single encounter had been brief but passionate and unforgettable. Since then, Igor had married, had two children, and divorced. What would things be like between them now? Could their brief but passionate affair be rekindled?

Audrey was so excited and thrilled that she got very little sleep either. After all these years of wondering what he was like, she'd finally met her father, and not only that, but she had a younger brother and sister as well. She couldn't wait to get to know him better.

"Guess what?" she said to Diane and Ramona the next day. "I met my father for the first time last night!"

"Wow!" said Diane. "What's he like?"

"He's big and tall and has dark brown hair and brown eyes, like me," Audrey told her. "He came to the house and my mom answered the door. He asked her if she remembered him. Then he saw me. He said he's taking us to Disneyland this weekend. I can't wait!"

"Oh yeah, you've never been to Disneyland before," said Diane. "You're gonna love it!"

"My little brothers and sisters really like it," added Ramona. "We don't get to go very often because it costs a lot for all seven of us to get in."

Saturday morning arrived. Igor came to pick Ginger and Audrey up in his minivan. He was dressed in jeans and a Hawaiian shirt and was wearing sneakers.

"You look very Western," Ginger, who was wearing a dress and flats, told him.

"After all these years I am fully integrated now." Igor laughed.

"Hi Dad," said Audrey, who was wearing a polo shirt and slacks.

"Hello, Audrey." Igor smiled and looked as if he wanted to give her a hug but wasn't sure if that would be proper. "Are we ready to go, then?"

They all got into the minivan and rode off. Igor pulled onto the interstate, and Ginger and Audrey watched the other cars and trucks as they whizzed by.

"What do you do now?" Ginger asked Igor.

"I work for space program, like I did in Soviet Union."

"How'd you meet your wife?" asked Audrey.

"She work in immigration office."

"Why'd you get divorced?"

"Audrey!" Ginger scolded.

Igor laughed. "It is all right. We have lots of arguments, go for counseling, it didn't work, so we split up. We are still good friends, get along better apart than we did together."

"What's her name?" asked Audrey.

"Her name is Pam."

At last they arrived at the entrance to Disneyland, and Audrey's eyes went round with wonder once again, just as they had at the mall.

"Was this built after you were shipwrecked, Mom?" she asked.

"No, it was built in 1955," Ginger told her. "But I'm sure it's changed a lot since then."

They rode the monorail first, then went on the Small World boat ride, then the Mark Twain riverboat. After that they felt brave enough to tackle the Space Mountain roller coaster. After that they were hungry so went to a little cafe for hot dogs and french fries.

"This is even more fun than the mall!" Audrey told her mother.

Igor and Ginger laughed. "Have you ever been here before?" Ginger asked Igor.

"I take Mark and Jennifer here last summer," he replied.

"I hope I get to meet them someday," said Audrey. "I always thought I was an only child before, and I think it's really neat to know that I'm not, after all."

"You will meet them one day," Igor promised.

After lunch, they rode the Tomorrowland train, then the King Arthur Carrousel, then the Storybook Land canal boats. Then they visited the haunted house and Splash Mountain. Afterwards they stayed for dinner, a parade, and fireworks. Ginger and Audrey were so tired that they fell asleep on the ride home. Igor gently shook Ginger awake.

"We are home now," he told her.

She blinked, startled, then yawned and stretched, then shook her daughter awake. "Audrey, we're home," she said.

Igor and Ginger sat up talking for a long time after Audrey had gone to bed.

"Thank you so much for today," Ginger told Igor. "We both had so much fun!"

"It was my pleasure." Igor smiled. "I miss the first twelve years of Audrey's life. Have to make it up to her somehow." Igor reached for Ginger's hand. "And how about you, Ginger? Do you still like me, maybe just little bit?"

Ginger felt her heart pounding as she looked into Igor's warm brown eyes. Her smile was all the answer he needed.

"I am so happy we meet again. So happy to meet Audrey as well." He gave her a gentle hug and a kiss on the cheek. "Good-bye for now, beautiful Ginger. I talk to you again very soon."

As she lay in bed alone that night, Ginger fantasized that Igor's arms were around her, and that she would be awakening to his smiling face in the morning.


	18. Mary Ann's News

Ginger and Audrey both slept in late Sunday morning. After lunch Igor called. Ginger was thrilled to hear his voice.

"You and Audrey are well, yes?" he asked.

"We're fine," she told him. "Audrey's at the roller skating rink with a couple of friends."

"That is good. I am happy that she have friends." Igor paused. "I call because I want to hear your voice again. I miss you."

"Well, I'm very happy you _did _call," said Ginger. "I miss you too."

"Audrey has lovely name," said Igor. "Where is it from?"

"She's named for the actress, Audrey Hepburn. Her middle name is Elizabeth, for Elizabeth Taylor."

"They are both beautiful women," said Igor. "So, Ginger, you have met a lot of men since you were rescued?"

"Not a single one that I was interested in dating," Ginger told him. "So how long have you been divorced, Igor?"

"Two years."

"So have you dated much since then?"

"I go on a few dates. None of them lead to anything serious. That is just as well, since I never forget you, Ginger."

"I never forgot you, either," said Ginger. "You know what? I think a part of me was hoping against hope that you'd look me up. I knew that the chances of that happening were probably near zero, but I couldn't help hoping just a little bit, anyway. Of course, I had no idea that you'd defected to the United States. How did that happen?"

"I was sent to Cuba to help them with their space program. I learn of escape plan, group of Cubans plan to go to Florida on raft. I join them, pretend to be Cuban as well. As soon as we reach Florida, I defect."

"Wow, that was sure clever!" Ginger was impressed. "So, tell me about Pam, if you don't mind talking about that."

"I do not mind at all. I meet her very soon after I get here. She is not as beautiful as you are, Ginger, but she is very kind to me and win me over. We marry, everything is fine for a few years. Then suddenly she is unhappy. I try to get her to tell me what is wrong, and finally she say that she never really love me, that it was all mistake."

"Oh, Igor, that's terrible!" Ginger exclaimed. "You must have been devastated!"

"I was, for long, long time. But life also has wonderful surprises, no?"

"It sure does." Ginger felt a warm glow inside. "We were all afraid we were going to spend the rest of our lives on that island."

"You ever think of me after I go?"

"It would have been very hard not to have. After all, you _did _leave me with something quite significant to remember you by."

Igor burst out laughing. "She is wonderful girl. All thanks to you, not to me. But now I have chance to make it up to her."

"As a matter of fact, she just now got home from the skating rink if you'd like to say hello to her."

"Of course I would!"

Ginger handed the telephone receiver to her daughter. "It's your dad."

"Hi, Dad!" Audrey said. "Yes, I had lots of fun yesterday...that's all right...uh huh...Diane and Ramona...they're both in my homeroom class at school...okay...all right...it was nice talking to you too...bye." Audrey hung the telephone up without asking Ginger if she wanted to talk to Igor some more and skipped happily to her room.

* * *

Mary Ann hummed happily to herself as she prepared dinner. She had wonderful news to tell Roy when he got home, and she couldn't wait to see him again.

At last he appeared, looking even more tired and bedraggled than usual. "Boy, what a day!" he exclaimed. "First a chemistry student nearly catches the lab on fire, then my student assistant is out with the flu so I have to grade all the pop quizzes myself, then..."

Mary Ann silenced him with a kiss. "Guess what?" she asked.

"What?" Roy's troubles seemed to have been temporarily forgotten.

"You're going to be a father!"


	19. First Time In Over Twelve Years

_A/N: This chapter does contain some 'M' material, so if that would bother you I recommend that you skip it...otherwise, enjoy! :)_

Over the next few weeks, it became customary for Igor to spend every Saturday, and sometimes Sunday as well, with Ginger and Audrey. They spent many enjoyable hours getting to know each other, and Ginger sometimes felt as if they were a real family, something she'd never had before as an adult. Before being shipwrecked, she'd focused solely on her career, and after being rescued, it had seemed natural to fall back into the same pattern.

One weekend Diane's family invited Audrey to go camping with them.

"So I do not get to see my princess this time," Igor said when he spoke to Ginger Thursday night.

"Sorry." Ginger chuckled. "We have to share her with her friends this time."

Igor laughed. "It is all right. She is growing up, gaining her independence. It will be the same way with Mark and Jennifer in a few years."

"I suppose it will, won't it?" Igor's two younger children rarely crossed her mind. Most of the time, she simply forgot they existed.

"I just enjoy them while they are little. Treasure the memories."

Ginger had to swallow a lump in her throat. "I'm sorry you didn't get to know Audrey when she was little. I don't even have any photos to show you, as I didn't have a camera on the island."

"That is all right! It is not your fault at all," Igor assured her. "So, this time it will be just you and me, then."

"So did you still want to get together?"

"Of course! I would love to spend time with you alone, Ginger. We do something more grown-up this time, yes?"

They spent most of the morning hang gliding. Ginger was terrified at first, but as the day progressed, she found that she enjoyed the sensation of the wind in her face.

"It really is like flying, just like a bird!" she exclaimed.

"I tell you you will like it," Igor said with a big grin. "Next time you will listen to me, yes?"

A feeling of warmth flooded over Ginger, one such as she hadn't felt in...over twelve years.

"You are all right, Ginger?" Igor looked at her with eyes full of concern.

"Oh yes, I'm fine. It's just that...I haven't felt the way I feel right now in ever so long!"

"It has been long time for me too, Ginger. I think we are good together, yes?"

Ginger nodded. "I've had more fun today than I've had since...actually, it's been so long I can't even remember the last time." Suddenly she felt guilty. "I mean, it's fun with Audrey along too, but..."

Igor laughed softly. "Is nice just you and me sometimes too, yes?" As his fingers caressed her chin, Ginger felt an electric thrill run through her body. "You are tired, Ginger. Let me take you for nice dinner, all right?"

He took her to a seafood restaurant, where they ate lobster dipped in butter, oysters, shrimp, and many other delicious things.

"Oh, Igor, this day has been so wonderful that I don't want it to end," Ginger said after eating until she was stuffed.

"It does not have to end," said Igor. "It can last as long as we want it to."

They went dancing, and then Igor took Ginger home. "Won't you please come in for awhile?" Ginger asked. "I just can't bear to say good-bye to you right now."

A look of tenderness passed over Igor's face. "I was hoping you would ask," he admitted with a sheepish grin.

"Would you like to listen to some music?" Ginger asked when they were inside.

Ginger found a Carpenter's cassette and put it into her cassette player. Then she poured glasses of wine for them both and sat on the couch beside Igor. He reached for her, and she went into his arms. He cuddled her close, and Ginger felt a pleasant warmth tingle throughout her entire body.

"Nice and cozy, yes?" asked Igor.

"Mm hm," she mumbled.

He chuckled softly and began placing soft kisses along her hairline. She lifted her mouth to meet his, and suddenly, he was kissing her deeply and passionately, and she was responding with equal fervor.

"It's been so long, Igor," she moaned. They shifted position so that Ginger was lying back on the sofa and Igor was lying on top of her, still kissing her passionately. Through their clothing, Ginger could feel the evidence of his arousal. She moved her hand to touch him there.

"Oh, Ginger," he groaned. Gently he tugged her sweater up and over her head, then unfastened her bra and let that fall too. Then he fondled one erect nipple with his fingers while using his tongue to flick the other one until Ginger was squirming with desire.

She tugged his shirt off over his head, and they each struggled out of their pants.

"Oh!" Ginger cried with delight at the sight of his manhood. Softly she caressed it with her hand, then then took it into her mouth and began to lick and suck on it.

"Oh, Ginger!" Igor cried with delight at her ministrations.

After a few minutes, she sensed that he was almost over the edge and lay back on the sofa again.

"Now it is my turn," he said lustily as he parted her legs. A moment later she felt his hot breath on her most intimate parts, and then his tongue, lips, and fingers drove her over the edge in almost no time.

While she was recovering, he lay beside her and got into position.

"Um, shouldn't we...you know..." She didn't quite know how to ask him.

He laughed gently. "I had vasectomy after Jennifer was born. I will not make you pregnant this time."

Too caught up in the moment to dwell on the ramifications of that fact on her possible future with Igor, Ginger felt only relief that their passion could be sated with no inconvenient interruptions.


	20. Someone For Everyone

Ginger cried out with joy as Igor entered her. The sensation of him moving inside her was simply incredible.

"Oh, Igor!" she whispered. He laughed softly, deftly using his fingers to drive her near the edge once again.

Within moments she was over it, and he followed fractions of a second later. Afterwards they lay in one another's arms, Igor's hot breath against Ginger's skin causing goose bumps to rise.

"Oh, Igor, that was incredible!" There were tears in Ginger's eyes. "It's just been so long..."

"Sweet Ginger, do not cry." The tears had fallen to her cheeks, and he tenderly kissed them away. "I am so happy that I please you."

"Do I please you, Igor?"

"You make me very happy, Ginger."

She raised herself up on one elbow and looked down at him with serious eyes. "So what next?"

"What do you mean?" He was baffled.

"Does this mean we're boyfriend and girlfriend now?" Having been isolated from society for fifteen years, she was ashamed of her obvious naivete concerning modern-day romantic relationships.

Igor grinned, amused. "Oh, Ginger, I will be very happy to be your boyfriend."

She sighed, relieved. She'd come to care for him very much since they'd been reunited and would have been devastated if he'd replied in the negative. Not that she'd really expected that, anyway.

"You were afraid I would say no?" His voice was tender as he gently stroked her chin.

"Well...kind of, yeah." She felt herself blush slightly.

"Oh, Ginger." He squeezed her tightly and kissed the top of her head. "Audrey will be very happy, yes?"

"Well, yes, I suppose so...I hope so."

"Of course she will be."

"Want to go lie on my bed? We'd have lots more room."

"Ah, Ginger, that would be perfect!" They got into her bed and cuddled up together and were both asleep within minutes.

* * *

They awakened late the following morning, still wrapped tightly in one another's arms.

"I don't want to get up," Ginger moaned, snuggling more deeply into Igor's embrace. His chest hairs tickled her nose, and his musky, masculine scent nearly drove her crazy.

"Was nice, yes?" Igor gently rubbed her back, and she stretched like a cat, luxuriating under the touch of his fingers. "Very different from time on island."

_"Very _different," Ginger agreed. They both laughed.

"Nice thing is, this time I can stay," Igor said.

"If only Gilligan hadn't gotten the time difference mixed up, we could have stayed together the first time."

"Gilligan." Igor laughed. "I will never forget him. Where is he now?"

"In Kansas with Mary Ann's cousin Cindy. I think he's finally found true love."

Igor laughed again. "Well, like they say, there is someone for everyone, yes?"

Ginger laughed too. "I suppose so."

Igor didn't plan to stay until Audrey got home late Sunday evening, but that's what happened anyway.

"Dad!" Audrey exclaimed in astonishment when she saw him.

"Hello, Audrey," said Igor. "Did you have fun on camping trip?"

"Oh, yeah, it was great!"

Igor stayed awhile longer to visit with his daughter and then said good-bye. "I had wonderful time, sweet Ginger, and I will miss you very much," he said, kissing Ginger's lips. "I will miss you too, Audrey."

Audrey waited until he had left, then giggled. "I know what you did! I know what you did!" she sang in a sing-song voice.

"That isn't any of your business!" Ginger exclaimed, but Audrey noticed that she was blushing.

"I think it's great, Mom. I'd love for you and Dad to get back together."

_"Back _together? We were never even really seriously involved to start with," Ginger told her. "There was really only that one time on the island, and then he had to leave."

"But this time he doesn't have to leave, so you two can stay together from now on!"

_We can, _Ginger reflected.


	21. Sharing The News

"Honey, that's wonderful!" The troubles of the day instantly forgotten, Roy swept his wife up into his arms and kissed her. "When?"

"Around the first of July."

"Wow!" Roy's eyes looked dreamy. "I can hardly believe it!"

"I remember all the times I took care of Audrey on the island," Mary Ann reminisced. "Sometimes I used to imagine that she was my own. She really brought out the maternal instinct in me, and I wanted a baby of my own so very much, and now, at last, my wish is going to come true!"

"I remember feeling the same way about Audrey myself," Roy admitted. "I'd never even really thought about fatherhood before she was born. I mean, I guess I just always assumed that it would happen someday, but she really got me thinking about it. She was always so curious about scientific things, always asking questions. I remember thinking how proud of her I'd be if I were her father." Roy gazed fondly at his wife. "I hope we have a little girl who looks just like you."

"I was just thinking how nice it would be to have a little boy who looks just like you," Mary Ann replied. "I can't wait to tell all the others."

The first one she called was Ginger. "Guess what!" she exclaimed as soon as her friend answered the telephone. "I'm pregnant!"

"That's wonderful!" Ginger exclaimed. "When did you find out?"

"At my doctor's appointment today," Mary Ann replied.

"How's Audrey?"

"She's fine!" said Ginger. "She still misses you very much, of course, but she's enjoying school and making new friends. And you'll never in a million years guess who's back!"

"Who?"

"Igor!"

"You're kidding!"

"Nope. He saw us being rescued on TV and came to see me soon afterwards. Just imagine how shocked he was when he found out about Audrey! He was fine with it though, happy even. We've been spending a lot of time together as a family, just the three of us. And Mary Ann, you know what? When we're all together like that, lots of times I almost forget that we're not a married couple who've been together all these years, because honestly, that's what it feels like."

"Well, that's great, Ginger. I'm really glad that you and Igor found each other again and that things are going so well. How does Audrey feel about finally meeting her father for the first time?"

"She's thrilled, of course. She and Igor have become very close. And Mary Ann...last weekend, Audrey went camping with her friend Diane and her family, and Igor and I spent the entire weekend together here."

"Well...that's nice." Mary Ann felt a bit awkward. She knew that she and Ginger had different backgrounds and that Ginger thought nothing of sharing such information with her, but the thought of what Igor and Ginger had done over the weekend still made her blush just a little.

"Be careful, Ginger," she told her friend. "You remember what happened the last time you and Igor...spent time together like that."

"He told me he had a vasectomy after his daughter was born."

"His daughter?"

"He was married before and had a couple of kids, but he's divorced now."

"Where are they?"

"In Minnesota with their mother. He gets them every summer."

"Wow, Ginger. So things are pretty serious between you two."

"I guess you could say that."

"Well, I hope it works out for you, Ginger. I think it's great that Audrey has a relationship with her father now."

Mary Ann called her cousin Cindy in Kansas next.

"That's really neat!" Cindy replied when Mary Ann told her the news. "I know how you've always wanted to be a mother."

"You too, Cindy. How are things going with Gilligan?"

"Things are going great with Gilligan! He's such a sweet guy, always so caring and thoughtful. Like a big kid in some ways but totally adorable. I know he'll make a great husband and father."

"I always knew he would too, Cindy. I'm so glad he's found a sweet girl like you who deserves him."

Next Mary Ann called the Howells, then the Skipper. They were all very happy for her and wished her the best.

"So how is everyone?" asked Roy, hugging his wife from behind and kissing her neck.

"Everyone's fine. Ginger's reunited with Igor, and it sounds like things are getting pretty serious between them. Gilligan and Cindy are still going strong as well."

"Well, I'm very happy for them all," said Roy. "Now all of us are paired up except the Skipper."

"I'm sure there's someone somewhere for him too," said Mary Ann.

_Wow,_ thought Ginger as she hung up the telephone. _A baby for Roy and Mary Ann! And this time the father will be there when the baby's born, as it should be...as it should have been for me..._

She had to swallow a lump in her throat.

Igor called her promptly after dinner, as he always did.

"Guess what!" she said. "You remember Mary Ann and the Professor who were shipwrecked on the island with me and got married right after we were rescued?"

"Of course I remember! How are they doing?"

"They're doing fine. Mary Ann's going to have a baby in July."

"Well, that is very nice, yes? They will have a child to love as well, just like we do."

Ginger thought of something. "Igor?"

"Yes?"

"Were you there when your other two children were born?"

"Yes, I was right there in delivery room both times. I tell you, Ginger, that was most wonderful feeling in the world, to watch baby being born, to know that it is from you, from the love you share with the mother. Nothing else compare with that."

Ginger didn't say anything for a long time.

"Ginger?" Igor asked gently. "You feel little bit sad right now, yes?"

"Yeah, just a little bit."

"Do not feel sad, darling Ginger. I love you."

"I love you too, Igor."

"I wish that I were there right now to put my arms around you."

"That's all right. I'll just imagine that you're here holding me all night."

Igor laughed. "Can't wait until I'm holding you all night for real."

"Me neither." Ginger laughed and felt much better.


	22. Christmas

Igor talked to Audrey for a few minutes after he'd spoken with Ginger, as was his habit.

"Guess what!" Ginger said to her daughter after she'd hung up. "The Professor and Mary Ann are going to have a baby!"

"Wow!" said Audrey. "I can't wait to see it!" She and Mary Ann still wrote regularly to one another.

Thanksgiving arrived, then the Christmas holidays. It would be the first Christmas the former castaways would spend apart from each other in fifteen years.

In Ohio, Roy and Mary Ann enjoyed decorating their cozy home with items unavailable to them during previous Christmas seasons.

"For the first time in fifteen years, we're actually going to have snow on Christmas Day," Roy observed.

"It's nice to have real ornaments, too," replied Mary Ann.

In California, Igor had news for Ginger.

"After school is out for holidays, I am going to Minnesota to spend Christmas with Mark and Jennifer, and Audrey will go with me. She want very much to meet her brother and sister. You are welcome to come with us too, of course, if you want."

"Oh, no, thank you," Ginger replied. "I'm due to start shooting on a new movie over the holidays". That wasn't true, but it was a convenient way to excuse Ginger from the awkwardness of meeting Igor's ex-wife and two younger children.

Igor looked disappointed. "Well, that is too bad. I am happy for you that you will get to make movie, but I will miss you."

"I'll miss you too, and Audrey, of course."

She went to the airport to say good-bye to them.

"I hope you have fun," she told them, giving Audrey a big hug. It would be the first time she'd ever been apart from her daughter for longer than a couple of days.

"I will be thinking of you the whole time," said Igor.

"You're so sweet," said Ginger. "I'll be thinking of you the whole time as well." They hugged and kissed, and then Ginger watched as they boarded the airplane, and as it took off and disappeared into the distance. Then she returned home with a heavy heart.

The first few days after Igor and Audrey had left weren't so bad. Ginger was invited to many Hollywood parties and met a lot of actors, actresses, producers, and directors, and even got some leads on some new roles to try out for. However, Christmas morning she awakened and realized that for the first Christmas in fifteen years, she was all alone.

* * *

"Merry Christmas, darling." Roy walked up behind his wife and fastened a chain around her neck. "This year I can give you a real necklace."

"It's lovely!" Mary Ann exclaimed. "Thank you!" She turned to kiss his lips as he embraced her. "You know what?" she continued. "I still have the very first necklace you ever gave me." She went to her dresser drawer and took out the seashell necklace he'd given her for her birthday the year Audrey had been born. "Remember this?"

Roy chuckled. "Indeed I do!" He softly rubbed her abdomen. "Just imagine, next year we'll have a little one of our own to share Christmas with."

"I can't wait!" Mary Ann exclaimed.

* * *

To Ginger it didn't really feel like Christmas. Every Christmas for the previous fifteen years, she'd been awakened by the joyous shouts of her fellow castaways, had enjoyed Mary Ann's delicious cooking and Gilligan's child-like enthusiasm. Even the Howells had always been in a good mood on Christmas Day. This year there was only a deafening silence.

Just when she thought she was about to go crazy, the telephone rang, and she heard Audrey's cheerful voice. "Merry Christmas, Mom!"

"Merry Christmas, darling!" she exclaimed, overjoyed to hear her daughter's voice. "How are you?"

"Oh, Mom, I'm having loads of fun!" Audrey enthused. "Mark and Jennifer are just so cute! Dad took us ice skating, to the mall, to the movies, to dinner, and to lots of places!"

"That's great, honey! I'm so glad you're enjoying yourself!"

"Dad wants to talk to you," Audrey said after a few more minutes of conversation.

"Ginger! How are you?" asked Igor. Ginger thought she'd never been so glad to hear his voice before.

"Great!" Ginger tried to force as much enthusiasm into her voice as she could. "I've been to so many parties I've lost count of them! And I've met so many interesting new people, and I've found out about some great new movies that are going to be made soon that I might can get a part in! It's...it's been wonderful..."

Igor heard the catch in her voice. "Are you all right, Ginger?"

His voice held so much warmth and compassion that she had to fight the urge to break down into tears. "Oh, Igor, it just doesn't feel like Christmas by myself! The Howells have each other, and so do Roy and Mary Ann. Gilligan's happy with Cindy, the Skipper has his sailor friends..." Suddenly, she was sobbing, hard.

"You miss them."

"I miss you too, Igor...and Audrey..."

"Ah, sweet Ginger, I wish I was there to put my arms around you. I will see you again soon. Will bring back surprise for you. Hope that you will like it."

"A surprise! For me?"

He chuckled. "Yes, of course, for you. I would never forget my Ginger at Christmas time."

"Oh, Igor!"

"I love you, Ginger. See you again soon."

"I love you too, Igor." Suddenly everything seemed much better.


	23. Mark And Jennifer

Ginger found herself counting down the days until Igor and Audrey were due to arrive home. With each passing day she missed Audrey more and more, and she found that she couldn't get Igor out of her mind. It was really strange. Even with all the handsome actors who wanted to date her, the only man she really wanted to be with was Igor. She wondered whether she was truly in love with him. Having always placed her career ahead of her personal life, and being familiar with the average life span of the typical Hollywood marriage, she'd never given much thought to a serious relationship with a man. Yet her brief but intense affair with Igor on the island had created an emotional bond that had only deepened since they'd reunited thirteen years later.

"Audrey!" she exclaimed as her daughter ran into her arms at the airport. "I missed you so much!"

"I missed you too, Mom," said Audrey. "Guess what? Mark and Jennifer came back with us!"

Surprised, Ginger looked up to see that Igor was holding two small children who looked like miniature versions of himself by the hand.

"Their mother was in serious car accident," he explained. "She is in coma at hospital. Doctors do not know if she will live or not. I bring Mark and Jennifer home to live with me until she recover."

"Oh, no!" Ginger gasped. "That's terrible!"

"This is my mom," Audrey told Mark and Jennifer.

"Hello," they both said politely.

"Hi," said Ginger, glancing from one child to the other. _What beautiful children. _She felt a sudden pang in her heart.

"Well, I know you must be tired from your long flight," she said. "Come on, Audrey. Let's go home."

"But I want to treat everyone to lunch," said Igor.

"All right." Ginger sighed, disappointed. "I'll see you later, then, Audrey."

"You are welcome to come too, Ginger," said Igor.

"Oh, OK." Ginger smiled, relieved.

"You did not think I meant you too, Ginger?" Igor chuckled.

Over lunch, Audrey and the two younger children chattered excitedly about their vacation.

"So how did movie shoot go?" Igor asked Ginger.

She shook her head. "It was cancelled."

"Too bad you did not know," said Igor. "You could have come with us if you had known."

"That's all right. I got invited to a lot of parties. It was fun."

Igor just looked at her for a long time, smiling gently, without saying anything.

* * *

It was several days later before Ginger heard from Igor again.

"I am so sorry I did not call sooner," he said. "I have been very busy getting Mark and Jennifer settled, getting them signed up for school, supplies they will need."

"Oh, that's all right!" said Ginger. "Poor things. They must really miss their mother."

"They do, Ginger. It is hard. Jennifer, she cry almost every night. I do what I can, but I am not the same as her mother."

"I sure hope she gets better soon."

"I hope so too, Ginger. Listen, Mark and Jennifer, they ask for Audrey, want to see her again. I want to ask Audrey if she would like to spend weekend with us."

"Well...sure. I suppose that would be all right. I'll go get her."

Audrey was, of course, thrilled at the invitation. She handed the telephone receiver back to Ginger. "Dad wants to talk to you again."

"Ginger, I would like for you to come over as well," Igor began. "But I do not think it would be good idea for you to spend the night with Mark and Jennifer here. I am sorry. It is just for little while, and then they will get used to living here and things can go back to normal."

Ginger was silent. She felt a sob rising in her throat.

"Ginger?" Igor asked softly after awhile.

"I...I..." Ginger stammered. "I was really looking forward to spending some time with you. I've missed you so much."

"I miss you too, Ginger," said Igor. "And like I said, I will be happy for you to come over for few hours. Just not spend night."

"Well...all right," Ginger said weakly.

"Look forward to seeing you," Igor said cheerfully.

Ginger thought about it a lot over the next few days, and the more she did so, the less appealing an afternoon with Igor and his children that could not be followed by an overnight stay seemed to her. In the end she was able to conjure up a slight headache, which was enough of an excuse for her to tell Igor that she couldn't make it.

"I am so sorry," Igor told her. "I will miss you. I hope your head feel better soon."

He sounded so concerned about her that Ginger felt just a little bit guilty for calling off the visit.


	24. Gilligan And Cindy

"I wanted you to be the first to know," Cindy told her cousin Mary Ann over the telephone. "Gilligan and I are getting married!"

"Wow, that's great! Congratulations!" Mary Ann enthused. "When?"

"We're thinking perhaps some time in the summer."

"That's when our baby's due, so I don't know whether we'll be able to make it or not."

"Oh, yeah, that's right!" Cindy exclaimed. "I'll talk to Gilligan. Maybe we could move it either forwards or backwards so you could come. I'd really hate for you guys to miss it. By the way, how are you feeling?"

"Pretty well, actually. I was having some morning sickness for awhile, but I'm just about over it now."

"I can't wait until Gilligan and I have our own."

Mary Ann giggled. "But you aren't even married yet!"

"I know, but I get so excited just thinking about it! I can just see Gilligan with a little girl. He'd be wonderful!"

"Oh, wouldn't he, though!"

Mary Ann and her husband chatted excitedly for a few more minutes, then said good-bye.

"Guess what!" Mary Ann told her husband. "Gilligan and Cindy are getting married!"

"Why, that's wonderful!" Roy exclaimed. "When is the wedding planned?"

"Cindy told me they were thinking about the summer, but that they'd consider changing the date so that we could come too."

"Why, that's very kind of them," said Roy. "We'll have to get them something really nice."

* * *

Ginger awoke on Valentine's Day feeling depressed. Igor had called her several times to invite her over for a visit with himself and his children, but she'd found an excuse to turn him down each time. After that, he'd stopped calling except to speak to Audrey. Therefore, she was genuinely surprised when he showed up on the set that day with flowers and an invitation for dinner.

"It will be just us two," he told her. "I have babysitter."

"Great!" she enthused.

"Where are you going?" Audrey asked her that evening when she saw her getting ready to go out.

"Your father and I are going out to dinner together."

"Oh, Mom, I'm so happy! Dad's been missing you so much!"

Ginger was taken aback. "Well, he certainly hasn't said anything to me about it."

"He thinks you don't want to spend time with him anymore."

"He told you that?"

"Not in so many words, but he just looks so sad whenever I talk about you around him."

A pang of guilt hit Ginger, but it was eclipsed by the joy of the prospect of being alone with Igor again.

When she greeted him at the door, she was so overcome with happiness that she threw her arms around his neck.

"I am very happy to see you again as well, Ginger," he laughed.

He took her back to the same restaurant he'd taken her to the day they'd gone hang gliding.

"Remember how the evening ended the last time we ate here?" she asked with a seductive smile.

He laughed knowingly, then suddenly turned quiet.

"What's wrong?" she asked.

"I miss you very much, Ginger," he said quietly.

"Well, I've missed you too, Igor."

"Why you stop coming over to visit?"

"Well...there just hasn't been much opportunity lately, has there?"

"You do not like Mark and Jennifer being here, do you?"

"That's not it at all," Ginger said quickly. "It's fine that they're here. I mean, they're your children; of course they should be with you."

"But you do not want to visit me when they are there."

"I don't have anything against them. It's just that...I've never been comfortable around other people's children."

"You are afraid they will not like you?"

"Of course I'm afraid they won't like me!"

"But why would they not like you?"

"Well, because you're their Dad, and...they might be afraid I'll try to take you away from them or something."

"They are wonderful children, Ginger. I think that you would like them."

"But what if they didn't like _me?"_

He chuckled. "Oh, I have no doubt that they would like _you."_


	25. The Camping Trip

Igor paid the bill and they left the restaurant.

"Aren't you coming back home with me?" asked Ginger.

Igor shook his head. "I promised babysitter I would be home before midnight. We could go for walk on beach if you like."

Ginger swallowed her disappointment. "That sounds romantic."

Walking along the shore with the waves lapping at their feet and Igor's big hand enclosing her smaller one, Ginger felt peaceful and content. Although she wouldn't have the chance to make love with Igor that night, it was still nice to feel the comfort of his presence.

"Ginger, I know that things are different now," Igor said after a few minutes. "I am sorry. I did not plan for it to be this way. But Mark and Jennifer are my children. I love them and are responsible for them."

"I know that, Igor," said Ginger. "But I just miss the way it was in the beginning _so _much. You know, when it was just me and you and Audrey. Now I feel as if I've lost both of you." She had to choke back a sob.

Igor took Ginger into his arms and held her close. "Precious Ginger," he said. "You have not lost us at all. We are both still here, both still love you. Only now there is also Mark and Jennifer."

"You know what, Igor? I never really thought of myself as the homebody type. I've always seen myself strictly as a career girl."

"But man can have both career and family," Igor objected. "Why not woman as well?"

"That's a good point," said Ginger. "I never really thought of it that way before."

"Ginger, I am planning to take Audrey and Mark and Jennifer camping on lake this weekend," said Igor. "We would be happy for you to join us."

"That sounds like fun, Igor. Sure, I'd be glad to come." She smiled at him, and he smiled back.

* * *

The following day, Mary Ann called Ginger with the news of Gilligan and Cindy's wedding.

"That's great that things are working out for them," Ginger replied. "I'd like to go to the wedding too, and I'm sure Audrey will enjoy seeing Gilligan again as well."

"You sound a little less sure about that last part," said Mary Ann.

Ginger sighed. "Igor's ex-wife was seriously hurt in an accident, and his two younger children are living with him now. Audrey spends every minute she can with them. I don't know whether she'd want to leave them long enough to go to a wedding in Kansas."

"Well, we'll miss her," said Mary Ann. "You don't sound very happy yourself, Ginger. Is everything still OK between you and Igor?"

"I haven't seen very much of him at all lately," Ginger told her. "But he did take me out to dinner for Valentine's Day, and I'm going camping with him and the kids this weekend."

"That's great! I hope you guys have fun," said Mary Ann.

* * *

Igor arrived Saturday morning to pick Ginger and Audrey up. Ginger got into the front seat beside Igor, and Audrey got into the back seat with Mark and Jennifer. Igor left the car radio off and the children sang songs during the trip to the camp site, which took a couple of hours. Ginger dozed for most of the trip.

By the time they arrived at the lake, it was lunchtime, so they ate the picnic lunch they'd packed. Then Ginger and Igor set up the tents while Audrey kept the younger children entertained. Later they all went fishing. They caught enough fish to supplement the hot dogs they'd brought along, and Igor cooked the fish over a fire. They were quite tasty.

When the sun began to set, they roasted marshmallows over the fire, told stories, sang songs, and played games. Ginger found that, to her surprise, she was actually enjoying herself.

At last Mark and Jennifer started yawning, and Igor put out the fire and they crawled into the tents, Igor and Mark together in one, and Ginger, Audrey, and Jennifer in the other. Ginger secretly longed to cuddle up to Igor but realized that she couldn't this time.

During the night, Ginger and Audrey were awakened by the sound of Jennifer's sobs.

"What' the matter, Jenny?" asked Audrey.

"I had a bad dream!" the little girl cried.

Audrey held her little sister and comforted her until she was asleep again. Ginger listened awkwardly the whole time, wondering whether she should say or do anything.

The next day the group went hiking.

"Hey, look what I found!" Mark exclaimed suddenly, holding out his hands.

Audrey took a quick peek. "Ugh!" she grimaced, shuddering.

Igor was the second to take a look. "Is most interesting bug," he said. "I have never seen one like that before."

In spite of herself, Ginger's curiosity got the best of her, and she had to take a look herself. "It looks like some kind of beetle to me," she said.

"I'm gonna keep him as a pet and name him Darth Vader," Mark announced.

"Oh, no, son," Igor laughed. "He would be much happier living in his forest home."

"Aw, Dad!" Mark protested.

"Hey, where's Jennifer?" asked Audrey.

"I do not know," Igor said, looking very worried.

"She was right here five minutes ago," said Ginger.

"We will look for her in opposite directions," Igor decided. "Mark will come with me."

Ginger had been searching for perhaps ten or fifteen minutes when she heard the unmistakable sound of a child crying.


	26. A Big Surprise

Ginger looked, and there was Jennifer, clinging to an overhanging tree limb. Tears coursed down the little girl's cheeks as she turned frightened eyes toward Ginger.

"Help me!" she cried. "I climbed up here and now I can't get back down!"

"Hang on, sweetheart. I'm coming." Ginger had to wade through a briar patch to reach Jennifer, and the briars scratched her legs as she approached the tree limb.

At last she reached Jennifer and gently lifted her. As the little girl put her arms around Ginger's neck and hugged her tightly, Ginger was poignantly reminded of Audrey at that age. The warmth and softness of the child's body against her own just felt so..._right._

A moment later, they rejoined the others.

"Jennifer! You're safe!" Igor exclaimed, reaching for his daughter.

"Ginger found me," Jennifer told him.

"Well, I am so glad that she did." Igor looked gratefully at Ginger, then frowned. "But Ginger, your legs are bleeding!"

"Jennifer was hanging onto a tree branch that was over a briar patch. I had to walk through briars to get to her," Ginger explained.

"Poor baby." Igor looked genuinely concerned. "I will doctor your wounds, and then we will have lunch."

They returned to the tent, where Igor tenderly medicated and bandaged Ginger's scratches, and then they had lunch. After lunch Mark and Jennifer took naps, while Igor, Ginger, and Audrey talked. To Ginger it seemed just like old times, before Igor and Audrey had gone to Minnesota for Christmas.

"That sure was scary to lose Jennifer like that," Audrey commented.

"It was my fault. I was responsible for her," said Igor. "Thank goodness Ginger found her when she did." He smiled and patted Ginger's knee.

"She's such a sweet little girl," said Ginger. "She reminds me so much of Audrey at that age."

"I wish I could have known you then, Dad," said Audrey.

"It is all right," Igor said with a smile. "We know each other now, and we are making up for lost time."

Later they played ball and went fishing again, and after dinner, they packed everything up and took the tent down and went home. By the time they arrived at Ginger's, it was nearly dark.

"I had a wonderful time, Igor," Ginger said. "Thank you for inviting me."

"Thank you for coming." Igor smiled warmly. "I had wonderful time with you this weekend, Ginger. Best time we have ever spent together." He kissed her, a warm, tender kiss that made her toes tingle. Then he hugged and kissed Audrey and took the younger children home.

* * *

There was a subtle but significant change in Igor and Ginger's relationship over the next week. Instead of just a quick hello and good-bye after speaking with Audrey, Igor began to stay on the telephone longer with Ginger, asking her about events that had happened during her day, telling her about his own day. Ginger gradually began to feel much closer to Igor than she had before the weekend they'd all gone camping together.

Igor was fairly bursting with excitement when he talked to Ginger Thursday night.

"I have babysitter for entire weekend," he told her. "I am going to take you to Las Vegas!"

"Wow!" Ginger was so excited that she had to fight the urge to jump up and down. "I can't wait!"

Igor chuckled softly. "I knew that would make you happy."

* * *

On Friday night, Audrey spent the weekend with Diane and Igor left the two younger children with a sitter and he and Ginger set out at the crack of dawn Saturday morning. They arrived in Las Vegas in time to eat breakfast and check into the motel. Then they spent the morning touring the city, ate lunch, and went shopping in the afternoon. Igor took Ginger out to a nice restaurant for dinner.

"Is nice to be just the two of us again, yes?" said Igor.

"I've missed it so much!" Ginger exclaimed.

"I have missed it as well," said Igor. "I must be honest, Ginger. For a while I was not sure, but I am sure now. I love you, Ginger, and I want to be with you for the rest of my life. Will you marry me?"


	27. Absence Makes The Heart Grow Fonder

_A/N: This chapter also contains some 'M' rated material._

"Oh, Igor!" An electric thrill of joy coursed through Ginger's body. Over the fifteen years she'd been stranded on the island, she'd pretty much given up all hope that she'd ever marry. If they ever got rescued at all, she'd surely be well past her prime, too old for any man to be interested. Yet here she was, being proposed to by the only man she'd wanted all along anyway. "Nothing in the world would make me happier!"

Igor was busying himself with removing a small package from his pocket. "It is not very big, but I hope you will like it." He opened the box to show her the diamond ring inside it.

"Oh, Igor, it's beautiful! Thank you!" Ginger held out her hand so that Igor could slip the ring onto her finger. Then she hugged his neck tightly, and he hugged her just as fervently.

"When?" she asked him.

"Well, sooner the better, of course." He chuckled.

"How about if we do it at the same time as Gilligan and Cindy?" Ginger suggested. "If it's OK with them, we could have a double wedding!"

"You mean, go to Kansas?" Igor didn't look very happy.

"Well, sure, why not?" Ginger shrugged. "I was on that island with him for fifteen years, Igor. He's just like a brother to me. More than that, even."

"Well...all right, if it is that important to you." Igor sighed. "I guess would not be too bad."

Back at the motel, they were barely inside before Ginger was kneeling before Igor, fumbling with his zipper, tugging at his pants. Quickly he shed them, and she took his manhood into her mouth, licking and sucking enthusiastically, as she reached behind to gently fondle the velvety skin of his scrotum.

"Oh, Ginger, you do know how to make me feel good!" Igor moaned.

Ginger alternated pleasuring him with her mouth and her hand until he couldn't stand it anymore. "Come," he said, taking her hand and leading her into the bedroom. "Now it is my turn to please you."

Eagerly she climbed onto the bed. Very slowly, teasing her until she squirmed with impatience, he removed first her slacks and then her panties. With his fingers he gently opened her and, slick with desire, she had an overwhelming climax the second the tip of his tongue touched her most sensitive spot.

A moment later he entered her, and they moved together quickly and smoothly. She climaxed again within seconds, and he followed moments later. Afterwards he rolled off her and held her close, both of them breathing heavy, drops of perspiration covering their bodies and mingling.

"That was incredible!" Ginger exclaimed after awhile.

"It was very nice," Igor agreed.

"We just proved it!" Ginger exclaimed. "Absence really does make the heart grow fonder!"

Igor laughed. "Will have to go away more often then."

"But what will poor little me do without you?" Ginger pretended to pout.

"I would not do that to you, my love. I was only kidding!"

* * *

"I can't wait to tell Audrey the good news!" Ginger said as they drove back home.

"We will tell her together," said Igor.

They drove to Diane's house to pick Audrey up. "Your father and I have some good news for you," Ginger told her daughter as soon as they were home.

"I ask your mother to marry me, and she accept!" Igor announced, his eyes twinkling with happiness.

"Oh, Mom!" Audrey rushed to Ginger and hugged her. "Dad!" She hugged Igor next. "I'm so happy! I can't wait to tell all my friends! When's it gonna be?"

"I'm going to call Gilligan and Cindy and find out if they've decided on a date yet," Ginger replied. "I'm hoping we can make it a double wedding!"

"Oh, Mom, that is just so totally cool!" Audrey exclaimed. "Will all the others be there too?"

"I'm sure they will. I certainly hope so, anyway."

"Mary Ann too?" Audrey asked hopefully.

"Well, I'm sure she will be, honey. Cindy is her cousin, after all, and Mary Ann's the one who introduced them."

"Yippee!" Audrey cried. "I can't wait to see her baby bump!"

The two adults laughed.

"I must go," said Igor. "I will call you tomorrow. We have much to talk about, yes?"

He hugged and kissed Ginger and Audrey good-bye. After he'd left, Audrey did a happy dance around the living room. "Oh, Mom, I've been hoping this would happen ever since you guys got back together!"


	28. A True Innocent

"Just think," said Ginger as they boarded the airplane to Kansas. "Next time we're here, we'll be husband and wife!"

"I can't wait to see the others again!" Audrey exclaimed. "It feels like it's been forever, doesn't it, Mom?"

"It sure does!" Ginger replied.

"Is Kansas like Minnesota?" asked Mark.

"I've never been," Audrey told him. "But I do know it has farms."

"Minnesota has farms, too," said Mark. "So they must be alike."

"Pooky can't wait to see Kansas," said Jennifer, clutching her teddy bear tightly.

The flight was fairly uneventful, and several hours later, they were touching down in Kansas. Gilligan, Cindy, Roy, and Mary Ann were there to meet them at the airport.

"Mary Ann!" Audrey shouted, running right into her friend's arms.

"Sweetheart!" Mary Ann exclaimed. "Wow, you've grown up so much since the last time I saw you!"

"This is my Dad and my brother Mark and my sister Jennifer," Audrey told her.

"Do you remember me?" Igor asked Mary Ann with a smile.

"Of course I remember you, Igor." Mary Ann chuckled. "It would have been kind of hard to forget you." They both laughed heartily.

"How do you do," she said to Mark and Jennifer, shaking their hands.

"This is Pooky." Jennifer held up her teddy bear. Mary Ann smiled and shook its paw.

Ginger hugged Gilligan and Roy and Mary Ann. She felt a twinge when she saw Mary Ann's swollen belly.

"The Skipper and the Howells will be here soon," said Gilligan. "We'll take you to the motel."

At the motel, they got settled in and then went to Cindy's family's house to meet up with the Skipper and the Howells.

It was another happy reunion. Ginger noticed that the Skipper was accompanied by an attractive brunette. "This is Priscilla," he told his fellow former castaways. "She and I have become very good friends over the past few months."

"I told you he wouldn't have any problem finding someone," Mary Ann whispered to her husband.

The group had a wonderful time visiting and sharing memories until it was time for them to return to their respective motels.

"It was nice to see all your friends again, yes?" Igor asked on the way back to the motel.

"It was fantastic!" Ginger exclaimed. "It felt just like being on the island again, didn't it, Audrey?"

"Uh huh," Audrey replied. "I wish we lived close enough that I could babysit Mary Ann's baby when I'm old enough."

Ginger was silent for the rest of the way to the motel. Igor touched her cheek tenderly. "You are tired, yes?"

Ginger responded with a tremendous yawn. Igor laughed affectionately and hugged her and kissed her cheek.

At the motel they finished unpacking and watched TV until it was bedtime. Audrey read Jennifer a bedtime story, and then they turned the light out and went to bed.

Lying in Igor's arms, Ginger found it difficult to fall asleep. She was excited and nervous at the same time about the wedding. She was accustomed to performing before an audience, of course, but this would be different. This would be real life, not just acting. What if something embarrassing happened?

She had butterflies in her stomach the following morning. and she could tell that Igor seemed nervous as well. Audrey and the younger children seemed merely happy and excited. Mark and Jennifer seemed borderline hyperactive, even. Ginger guessed that they must sense the emotions of the adults.

After a quick breakfast they left for the church, arriving at about the same time as Gilligan and Cindy. Audrey was going to be one of the bridesmaids, Mark was going to be the ring bearer, and Jennifer was going to be the flower girl.

As she stood beside the man she loved and repeated her vows, Ginger felt her nervousness give way to excitement and joy. When Igor lifted her veil to kiss her, she felt like she was on top of the world.

For the rest of the day it was as if she was walking on air. At long last she was married to the man of whom she'd dreamed for thirteen years.

"I never imagined I could be this happy," she whispered to Igor as she lay in his arms that night.

"Nor I as well," he replied. "I love you, sweet Ginger."

"I love you too, Igor."

* * *

Gilligan and Cindy were alone together for the very first time.

"Well, what are we supposed to do?" Gilligan asked, looking around awkwardly.

"I guess we should get undressed," said Cindy.

"All right," said Gilligan. "You can have the bathroom first. I'll wait right here."

Cindy laughed. "Gilligan, we're married now. It's all right to get undressed in front of each other."

"But Cindy, then you'll see my..."

"Mm hm." Cindy smiled and nodded. Gilligan stared at her for a moment, then shrugged and began to get undressed.

At last they were both completely naked. Gilligan gasped as Cindy touched a certain part of his anatomy and watched in wonder as it began to expand. "Is it supposed to do that?" he asked in hushed tones.

"It sure is."

"So what do we do now?"

"Come on. I'll show you." Cindy took his hand and led him to the bed.


	29. The Hinkley Baby

One day several months after the double wedding, Mary Ann was taking a nap after lunch when she was awakened by a sharp pain across her abdomen. She'd had false contractions before, but this one felt different. A shiver of anticipation went through her. _This might be the real thing! _she thought.

She considered calling Roy, then thought twice about it. After all, they'd already been to the hospital a couple of times before with false alarms, and even though he'd been nice about it, Mary Ann hated the thought of making her husband leave work for nothing.

After a few more pains, each one increasing in severity, Mary Ann decided that they _must _be real contractions, after all. Trembling with excitement, she dialed the telephone number for Roy's department and reached the secretary, Connie.

"Hi, Connie. This is Mary Ann," she said. "May I please speak to Roy?"

"He's in the lab right now," Connie told her. "Can I take a message?"

"Could you please fetch him? It's kind of an emergency. I'm in labor!"

"Oh, wow! Sure, I'll get him right away." A few minutes later, Mary Ann heard her husband's voice on the other end of the line.

"I'm in the middle of a very important experiment, Mary Ann. Are you sure it's the real thing this time?"

"I'm positive! Oh, Roy, please hurry!"

She heard a heavy sigh. "All right. I'll be right there."

Mary Ann paced the floor anxiously, doubling over in pain every time a contraction hit her. At last she heard the key turning in the lock.

"Roy! You're here!" she cried, rushing to the door so quickly that she almost knocked him over.

One look at his wife, and Roy realized that this time, she really _was_ in labor. He drove her to the hospital as quickly as he could and helped her out of the car and into the building. As they approached the front desk, the receptionist gave them a funny look.

"Are you a new physician here? I've never seen you before," she said.

"What? Oh, no, I'm not." Roy laughed sheepishly as he finally noticed that he was still wearing his lab coat. In his haste to get home, he'd forgotten to take it off. "I'm a science instructor at the university. My wife needs to be admitted right away."

A wheelchair was quickly brought for Mary Ann, and she was wheeled to the labor and delivery department, where the couple was greeted by a nurse who introduced herself as Susan.

"I've heard that name before, and you both look familiar to me as well, but I just can't think of why," she mused as she helped Mary Ann into a bed.

"You're in labor, all right," she said after quickly examining Roy's wife. "Four centimeters already."

"Can I please have something for pain?" asked Mary Ann.

"Of course!" Susan added something to her IV. "I've got it!" she exclaimed a few minutes later. "You're two of the castaways, aren't you?"

Mary Ann smiled. Roy looked a bit chagrined.

"That must have been so romantic, being together on that lovely tropical island all those years!"

"Actually, it was a struggle just to survive at first," Mary Ann told her. "We had to get used to each other, and I missed my family very badly for a long time."

"Although I did make some of my most significant scientific breakthroughs during that time," Roy added.

"One of the other women actually had a baby on that island, didn't she?" asked Susan.

"Yes, Ginger had Audrey when we'd been shipwrecked for a couple of years," Mary Ann told her. "She's thirteen now."

"And which one of you guys was the father?" She winked at Roy. "It wasn't you, was it?"

"Oh, no." Roy laughed. "Actually, it wasn't _any _of us. A couple of Russian cosmonauts landed on the island by accident once, and one of them became..._very _friendly with Ginger during the brief time they were there."

"He actually found Ginger and Audrey again after we'd all been rescued, and he and Ginger are married now," Mary Ann added. "Isn't that romantic?" She groaned as another painful contraction hit her.

"Honey, perhaps it's time we started doing those breathing exercises we learned in Lamaze class," Roy suggested.

"But I already forgot them!" Mary Ann's eyes grew wide with fright.

"That's all right, darling. I'll help you remember them," Roy comforted her.

Mary Ann labored until night fell, and then her contractions got stronger and closer together.

"I feel like I have to push," she told Susan.

"I'll fetch the doctor right away," said Susan. "Don't start pushing until he gets here."

"But I feel like I have to push _now!"_

"Just breathe through the pain," Roy told her. "Come on. I'll help you."

The doctor arrived shortly, and Mary Ann groaned and pushed with all her might.

"Would you like to watch your baby being born?" Susan asked Mary Ann.

"Oh, yes!" Mary Ann exclaimed.

Susan placed a mirror so that Mary Ann could watch. She pushed and pushed, and just before midnight, their daughter was born. Roy caught her as she emerged from Mary Ann's body, then lay her gently across her mother's chest.

"Oh, Roy, she's beautiful!" Tears of joy rolled down Mary Ann's face as she held the newborn close.

"You did great, honey!" Roy exclaimed. "I'm so proud of you!"

"I'd like to name her Dawn," said Mary Ann. "I've always loved that name. It makes me think of early morning on the farm when the dew's on the grass and everything's just so quiet and peaceful. The the rooster crows and a new day begins."

"How about Dawn Mary or Dawn Ann," Roy suggested. "I'd like her middle name to be one of yours."

"Thank you, but I think Dawn Marie sounds better," said Mary Ann.

"Dawn Marie it is, then," Roy announced.

"She has your nose," Mary Ann remarked.

"And your eyes," said Roy. "And your fingers as well. Perhaps she'll play piano some day."

"Perhaps." Exhausted but elated, Mary Ann held baby Dawn for a few minutes longer, then handed her to Roy and fell asleep.

_A/N: Yes, the baby is named for Dawn Wells. :)_


	30. Just You And Me

"Guess what!" Ginger called to her husband. "Roy and Mary Ann have a daughter!"

"That is wonderful!" Igor hugged his wife from behind and kissed the top of her head. "Now they have new little one to love. I am happy for them!"

"Her name is Dawn Marie Hinkley," Ginger continued. "See, here's a photo they sent." Ginger showed the photo of baby Dawn to her husband.

_"Da, _she is beautiful!" Igor exclaimed. "Beautiful little girl born to nice parents. They must be so proud of her."

"I'm sure they are," Ginger replied. "Cindy just found out she's pregnant too."

"That is nice. Their children will be close in age, yes?"

"It seems like everyone's having a baby but me." Ginger sighed.

"You want another baby, Ginger?"

"It sounds silly, doesn't it? But yeah, sometimes I think it might be nice."

"But I cannot have more children, Ginger. You know that. I do not want more. Three is plenty."

"Yeah, I know." Ginger looked at the photo of Dawn glumly. "You know, if I only hadn't been stuck on that island all those years..."

Igor took both Ginger's hands into his own and looked into her eyes. "Listen to me, Ginger," he said gently. "We are together now. We have beautiful daughter, wonderful family. There is no reason to be sad."

"Yeah, you're right." Ginger slipped her arms around him and buried her face in his chest, and he hugged her tightly, touching his lips to her hair and lightly caressing her cheek with his finger.

* * *

In late August, Igor's ex-wife, Pam, had sufficiently recovered from her injuries that she was able to return home and to go back to work. She sent word to Igor requesting that Mark and Jennifer be returned to Minnesota so that they could start the school year there.

Ginger and Audrey accompanied Igor and the two younger children to the airport.

"I'm sure gonna miss you guys," Audrey said as she hugged her younger brother and sister good-bye. "You'll write to me, won't you?"

"Sure," said Mark.

"Don't forget to say good-bye to Pooky, too," said Jennifer.

"I will miss you both very much," Igor told his two younger children. "But I will see you again at Christmas time, yes?"

Igor hugged both children and kissed their cheeks. Ginger hugged them but didn't kiss their cheeks. Even after being around them every day for several months, she still didn't feel comfortable with that level of intimacy with them.

Igor was very quiet for days following Mark and Jennifer's departure, and one day Ginger saw him sitting on the sofa simply staring into space.

"Are you all right?" she asked.

"I am all right." Igor sighed. "I was just thinking. Right about now Mark would be pretending to be cowboy and Jennifer would be playing dress up as princess."

"You miss them." Ginger sat beside him on the sofa.

"Of course I do." Igor put his arm around his wife.

"At least you and I and Audrey are all still together."

"Audrey grow up fast," said Igor. "In a few years it will be just you and me."

"Yeah." Ginger sighed.

"But that is all right," said Igor. "It is as it should be. As long as I am with you, I will be happy. We will grow old together, Ginger. That will be nice, yes?"

Ginger was quiet. Movie rolls for women became fewer and farther between as they got older.

"Do not be sad," said Igor. "Even when your hair is white, I will love you no less."

"Oh, Igor, you're so sweet!" As she began to kiss him passionately, they both felt all melancholy melt away.

_Many thanks to everyone who read and reviewed this story. :)_


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